


Seishun Gakuen Highschool

by Reyanth



Category: Tenipuri - Fandom, Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-11
Updated: 2016-12-03
Packaged: 2018-07-14 10:01:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 27,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7166618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reyanth/pseuds/Reyanth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After debuting in the world of professional tennis during his middle school years, Ryouma returns to Japan to enroll in Seigaku High in search of the team atmosphere he misses and the senpais he has been pining for all along.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Tezuka looked down at the tennis courts, surveying the wave of freshman looking to join the team. He was captain once again in his senior year of high school, and should have been excited about the new potential busting down the doors. However, it just didn’t feel right.

This year should be Echizen’s first year in high school but last Tezuka had heard, the shorty had been in Australia, pursuing the Grand Slam. He’d disappeared, though, once he lost in the semifinals of that tournament, and no one had heard from him since. For some reason, Tezuka couldn’t help hoping to see him wander onto the court, carelessly bouncing a ball on the rim of his racket and challenging the nearest person to a match.

“Tezuka?”

Belatedly, Tezuka realized Oishi had been trying to get his attention. “Sorry, Oishi. What is it?”

Oishi peered at him suspiciously. “You’re staring right out that window but you haven’t seen a thing, have you?”

“Of course I have,” Tezuka replied defensively. “The freshman are arriving.”

“The freshmen arrived ten minutes ago,” Oishi said quietly. “Except for the one that just showed up and challenged Akae-san to a first-to-five match.”

Frowning, Tezuka looked back out the window and saw that Akae was indeed playing someone, though the opponent was obscured by a thick-leaved tree. Whoever it was must have been either confident, or stupid, because Akae was a regular—the only one who was not a previous member of the Seishun Gakuen Middle School National Championship team. He had earned his place, and Seigaku High had reached the semi-finals last year.

If they’d had Echizen, Tezuka knew they would have taken the championship again…

What was that move!?

“Did you see that?” Oishi breathed, pressed up against the window in awe. “He… He beat Akae! What was that?”

Tezuka closed his eyes, resisting the shiver that ran up and down his spine. That move looked very familiar. It looked like the kind of trick a certain someone would pull out just to show off.

He envisioned the move perfectly in his mind’s eyes. 

The ball hit the net with a heavy spin, traveled across it, then reversed and rolled diagonally down, before hitting the ground and reversing again to roll between the opponents legs. It was the type of thing that Echizen might call–

“Drive Z! Drive Z! Did you see that Oishi? O’chibi just pulled out a new move!”

*

Kikumaru was bored. He didn’t like the first official day of club activities. Freshmen were interesting and all but they just weren’t his freshman. He’d been looking for a likely target to try out as his own personal kouhai when a latecomer arrived. 

Ready to scold the tardy kid, he’d been very surprised when the freshman pulled out his racket, pointed it at Akae, and provoked the third year regular into a match. It all happened so fast that it wasn’t until the kid raised his face so it could been seen under the cap that he recognized the cocky, tardy, wonderful little freshman. His O’chibi was back! Echizen was back!

Fuji subtly warned Akae that he shouldn’t be so quick to accept the challenge, while Inui chuckled to himself, obviously amused by his calculations—he didn’t like Akae very much. The technical player never failed to insult Inui’s data tennis. Meanwhile, Momo froze with Kaidoh in a headlock, the viper hissing in surprise as Momo whooped in joy.

Kikumaru knew that Oishi was watching from an upper classroom with Tezuka. He wondered if they could recognize Echizen from up there… 

It felt like the team was finally whole again. The question was, was Echizen back for good?

The spontaneous match began, and Echizen scored two points easily. He almost lost the third but rescued it at the last second. Akae was a very precise player, much like Oishi, but his strength gave him an edge. He tried to utilize that to score, but Echizen countered after seeming to let it through, and raised the score to 4 – 0. 

It was so good to see the kid back in action, up close and personal. Kikumaru had, of course, followed Echizen’s pro games, constantly astounded and amazed by his O’chibi, but now he had a front row seat once more. A damn good thing, too, otherwise he’d never have gotten such a good look at the newest move O’chibi pulled out of his cap.

Tossing out his catchphrase, “Mada mada dane,” Echizen then pulled out his famous twist serve. Akae, having faced Ibu Shinji’s upgraded kick serve the previous year, managed to just catch it, barely returning it over the net. However, Echizen then gave him a fairly easy return, into which Akae sent all of his power and precision, thinking to steal a lucky point. Echizen was one step ahead, though. A smirk spread beneath the lowered brim of his cap as he announced a brand new technique.

“Drive Z.”

He returned the ball, seemingly mistakenly as it headed straight for the net. It looked as though it had lost a lot of power, though it can’t have, and the spin must have actually increased. Hitting the net, it rolled along.

Akae, desperate to win back at least one point, didn’t take luck for granted, he dived to catch the ball in case it rolled onto his side. However, his foresight went unrewarded. 

The ball did roll to Akae’s side. Down the net. In the opposite direction. It then hit the ground before everyone’s stunned eyes and rolled back in its original direction, right between Akae’s trembling legs.

Kikumaru didn’t even realize he’d taken off until he rounded the third flight of stairs inside the school building. His first instinct was to celebrate with Oishi. He had to know if his partner had seen that incredible move!

“Drive Z! Drive Z! Did you see that Oishi?” he cried, bursting into the classroom he knew Oishi and Tezuka were observing from. “O’chibi just pulled out a new move!”

*

Tezuka felt cold and hot all at once. It really was Echizen. It really was…

He ran past Oishi who was struggling not to fall over as Kikumaru bowled into him. He ran down three flights of stairs. He ran across the stretch of grounds between the school building and the tennis courts. Then, he stopped flat in the gateway, framed by mesh fences. 

Before him stood the very person he had been vainly hoping to see. It was impossible. It was… miraculous.

It was against the rules. 

“There will be no unofficial matches,” Tezuka wheezed, “while I am the captain of this team. And-” “Captain-” “-You’re late, rookie-” “-Your glasses are crooked.” “-Fifty laps!”

Tezuka belatedly realized what Echizen had told him, and reached up to straighten his glasses with as much dignity as he could while out of breath and shocked to the core.

“Yes… Captain,” Echizen said quietly, smiling as if he wanted nothing more in the world than those fifty laps. 

He took off without another word, leaving Tezuka to catch his breath before the eyes of the entire team and prospective rookies. Fuji caught his eye, his expression challenging, and Tezuka stared at him for a moment before turning and walking away. He yelled over his shoulder, “Akae, twenty five laps for breaking the rules!"


	2. Chapter 2

“Taka-san! Look who wandered home!” Momo cried as he entered Kawamura Sushi, the rest of the Seigaku gang trailing behind him.

Kawamura did a comical double take as the still short Ryouma was revealed from behind Momoshiro.

“Echizen!” Kawamura cried. “You’re back!”

“Hey, Kawamura-senpai,” Ryouma said quietly, annoyed at the fuss everyone was making.

Once Kikumaru made it clear that he was back to stay, Kawamura announced a free celebratory round of sushi for everyone.

Momo was ecstatic. “I knew you wouldn’t let us down, Taka-san! Just like old times!”

Shyly scratching the back of his head, Kawamura muttered that he should probably get to work or he’d never serve them all in time. Ryouma had just been shoved into a seat right in front of the sushi chef, when he received the shock of his life. Kawamura picked up a knife and then suddenly screamed:

“ONE SERVING AND ONE SERVING ONLY! HEAR ME, MOMO? I WON’T HAVE YOU EATING THIS RESTAURANT OUT OF BUSINESS BEFORE I’M OLD ENOUGH TO RUN IT!”

Ducking, Ryouma felt the flailing knife swoosh over his head. He was rescued by Tezuka, whose fist closed about Kawamura’s as he stared the burning sushi chef down.

“A~ah… sorry,” Kawamura muttered. 

Oishi, looking like he might faint, flopped beside Ryouma to check that the boy was still alive and hadn’t died of a heart attack. “I thought that only happened when you held sports equipment, Taka-san.”

“Uh, well, old habits die hard.” Kawamura laughed nervously. “Sometimes I have little relapses like that… I guess I’m just excited to see Echizen again.”

Momo made to sit down beside Ryouma, but Tezuka got there first. He was as stony faced as ever, but Ryouma couldn’t help feeling a little pleased that he had bothered to beat Momo to the punch. 

Not that he wasn’t glad to see Momo again—they would probably go out for burgers as soon as possible to catch up—but he’d been afraid that Tezuka would be angry at him.

“Oishi, move over so I can sit next to O’chibi!” Kikumaru whined.

Laughing, Oishi gave up his seat as Kikumaru ruffled Ryouma’s hair. Before he sat down, the acrobat snuck in one good glomp, grinning from ear to ear, and Ryouma couldn’t help grinning back.

He’d never admit it, but he missed being fussed over by his senpai.

Momo sat on the end next to Tezuka, with Oishi beside Kikumaru, then Fuji, Akae, Kaidoh, and Inui. There was chatter across the bar, and Kikumaru was very entertaining as usual. Tezuka sat quietly beside Ryouma, pitching in to the conversation every now and then—usually when it came around to tennis.

So far, no one had asked just what Ryouma was doing back, which was the first question he had expected to get when he showed up at Seigaku High. It was coming. The question was inevitable, but what was everyone waiting for?

Despite his earlier threat, Kawamura kept supplying them with more and more sushi, and soon, everybody spread out to various tables to chat comfortably as the edge of their hunger was assuaged.

Ryouma knew the questioning was finally coming close when Oishi cut Kikmaru off from loudly inviting him over to the table he had claimed with Momo—which was full of all kinds of tasty sushi.

Rather, Fuji slipped into the free seat beside Ryouma and Tezuka placed his tea down on the counter, slowly turning it clockwise. It was an unnatural nervous habit for the captain, so Ryouma just stayed quiet and waited for one of the two on either side of him to speak.

Finally, Tezuka said, “You shouldn’t be here.”

“You did well in the Australian Open, Echizen-kun,” Fuji elaborated for him. “If it wasn’t for-”

“I’m not giving up,” Ryouma cut in. “I’m not quitting pro tennis.”

“Then why-”

Ryouma squirmed. He’d been dreading this conversation. He hated to tell people his ‘thoughts’ and ‘feelings’, but he had to be honest with his senpais right now or they'd force him to leave again.

“For the same reason you’re both here,” he said quietly, knowing he was right. “Why haven’t you graduated from college yet, Fuji-senpai? And what’s the point in hiding in a high　school tennis club, captain?”

“That’s differe-”

“No, it’s not. Not at all. I’ve already missed out on two years of being a normal school kid. I thought about coming back a lot, but at this timing… Just once more… all together...” Suddenly, Ryouma’s voice got very quiet as he tried to explain his decision. “I’m really glad everyone is still here. Right now… This is where I want to be more than anywhere else in the world. The Grand Slam will still be waiting for me next year, and the year after that. I have a long time to play tennis with the pros. If you’ll have me back… I want to play tennis with Seigaku. I want to face Atobe and Sanada, and all those other tough, hardworking teams and players that gave us hell.”

Fuji and Tezuka were quiet for a long time, but Ryouma didn’t know what else to say. If that didn’t convince them, then what else could?

A hand on his shoulder startled him half to death.

“Welcome back, Echizen-kun,” Oishi said warmly.

“Welcome back, O’chibi!” Kikumaru chirped.

Kaidoh hissed in agreement. “Welcome back.”

“Welcome back!” Momo mumbled into his hair, already having tackled him with a hug.

“Welcome back, Echizen,” Inui added, as Akae-san said, “Welcome.”

Ryouma wished Momo wasn’t strangling him so he could free his hands and pretend there was dust in his eyes. The tears slipping down his cheeks were embarrassing.

“Welcome back,” Fuji said quietly, smiling as usual.

There was a pause, and Ryouma looked up at Tezuka, who smiled minutely.

“Seigaku’s pillar has returned,” he said, almost warmly. “It’s about time.”

“Captain,” Ryouma whispered, as Momo’s hold tightened on his neck.

Suddenly, Momo was removed, and Ryouma looked up to see Taka-san dangling the big guy one-handed by his collar while placing a small cake on the bench. 

“Welcome back, Echizen,” the sushi chef said with a grin. “Feel free to stop by here anytime.”

“Thank you, everybody!” Ryouma cried as he finally scrubbed the tears from his face.

It was good to be home.


	3. Chapter 3

Ryouma stared up at his ceiling idly petting Karupin. He couldn’t sleep. Seeing everyone again had revived a lot of old emotions that he thought he’d left behind.

It was sad that Taka-san was no longer on the tennis team but he figured he and Momo would be frequenting Kawamura sushi from now on. That was, if Momo wanted to hang out after practice like they used to.

He had to keep in mind that a lot had changed. Well, so far he had yet to prove that theory aside from Taka-san’s absence from the team. Actually, so far, everyone seemed exactly the same.

Inui-senpai had made countless comments about Ryouma’s improved data, and how he’d been taking notes from all the televised matches. No difference there.

Kaidoh-senpai… still spoke as little as possible. He was still gruff and unapproachable. Ryouma was also willing to bet he still had a heart of gold and hadn’t overcome his fear of scary stories.

On that note, Kaidoh and Momo fought just as much as they always had, if not more, by what Echizen had seen during practice. Not to mention that Momo was definitely even more enthusiastic than when Ryouma had left. He felt bad about not getting a chance to talk to his one-time best friend earlier but he would make up for it.

It was hard to imagine Fuko-Buchou Oishi any differently. He hadn’t changed that unique hairstyle of his—though Ryouma had noticed a few knock-offs around the school.

Kikumaru-senpai was obviously as energetic and cute as ever. Not to mention that he was as playful as always and still hadn’t learned the meaning of "personal space." Not that Ryouma really minded. He just hoped he didn’t sport a telltale blush in front of Oishi.

Ryouma had always admired all of his senpais, but there were varying degrees of admiration, he had discovered, looking back on his relationships with his team members. While Momo was his best friend, he loved to hang out with Kikumaru-senpai. Later, he had realized that he had a small crush on the redhead. However, that crush paled in comparison to the feelings he realized he had been harboring for someone else.

Well, actually, two someones. Tezuka and Fuji.

Ryouma had always known he loved Tezuka more than was normal but he hadn’t always understood what that meant. It wasn’t until he belatedly figured out he had had a crush on Kikumaru that he realized his feelings for Tezuka went well beyond that.

The captain had been his friend and mentor, and had shown him that there were others besides that crabby old man that were worth playing. It was because of Tezuka that Ryouma continued to play and evolve. Tennis was his reason for living, and without Tezuka, he wouldn’t even have that.

On the other hand, while he had known for some time now that he had feelings for Tezuka, Ryouma was shocked to learn something only that afternoon: He felt just as strongly about Fuji. 

The quiet, smiling tensai had always been in his mind. Always. He just never noticed. When he thought about it, he wondered almost constantly what Fuji would do or say, what he would think. It was so subtle and so constant, that until he had seen the tensai smiling at him again with that familiar serene expression, he hadn’t even noticed.

Deep emotions just weren’t Ryouma’s style. He wished he could have kept all that locked away but it came along with seeing all those faces that had stayed fresh in his mind for two years.

He didn’t know how to deal with his feelings but at least had time now to relax a little and enjoy spending time with his old friends once more. Sure, he had to deal with school, and catching up on the bits and pieces his correspondence courses had left uncovered, but that was a fair price to pay for having a normal life again, if only for the next year.

*

Kikumaru smiled as he hung up the phone. Oishi was so sweet. He always knew the right thing to say right before bed to keep Kikumaru smiling all night.

The smile didn’t last for long this time, though. Oishi’s sweetness backfired. Rather than making Kikumaru happy, it made him feel miserable.

He’d been feeling out of sorts since his O’chibi showed up. Echizen was still small but he was no longer the kid he used to be.

Looking at the current Echizen, and remembering how he used to climb all over and cling to the old Echizen… It made Kikumaru feel inexplicably guilty. How was he supposed to explain to Oishi why he kept blushing when he looked at O’chibi? 

The truth was that Kikumaru suspected he had a slight crush on his O’chibi, and he was ashamed. Oishi would have every right to be mad, and yet, there he was, being so sweet on the phone. 

Upset, Kikumaru crawled into bed and hugged his pillow tight. He couldn’t be unfaithful to Oishi, even in his thoughts. He would just have to not think bad things, and most importantly, stop blushing.

But he couldn’t avoid O’chibi. He’d just have to work around that. He’d missed Echizen for too long not to take advantage of this sudden reappearance. 

Oishi wouldn’t mind that, surely. It would be just like the old days. O’chibi and Momo would drain Kikumaru’s allowance in pursuit of burgers, then Oishi would make a nice, romantic dinner for the two of them because Kikumaru was broke.

Okay, so the romantic dinner would have to be a new addition but it would be a nice one. Oishi would like that. He liked to cook, though only Kikumaru knew how good he was.

Actually, they made a very good team. If one of their recipes was missing something, the other would always know what to add to make it perfect.

It was a lot of fun cooking with Oishi. 

It was a lot of fun doing anything with Oishi.

That’s why Kikumaru had to make sure he didn’t lose Oishi.

*

Tezuka gently stroked Fuji’s hair, lulling the tensai to sleep. He did so love the beautiful bundle in his arms. 

Who wouldn’t? Tezuka was very lucky to have Fuji’s heart, and his trust. He was determined not to do anything to break or lose either of those.

That was going to become an increasingly difficult feat, though. As much as he loved Fuji, Tezuka had loved Echizen from the beginning, even if he lied even to himself about it most of the time.

How could he resist falling in love with that insolent, brilliant little person that renewed his passion just as he began to fall short? How could he deny that he’d spent hours watching the rookie practice, contemplating the hidden potential that he so desperately longed to draw out?

When Echizen beat him for the first time, he felt his heart breaking, because at the time, it felt like the end. It felt as though Echizen had left him behind forever, and he had never even tried to reach out for the one thing he wanted. He thought he had lost his chance.

And now it was back. Now he had a second chance, and yet he was helpless. It didn’t matter who he loved more, he couldn’t trade one for the other. He would never cheat and, somehow, he didn’t think Fuji would be willing to share. He shouldn’t.

Tezuka would just have to give up on his little fantasy of having everything he wanted. After all, a bird in hand was worth more than two in the bush.


	4. Chapter 4

“What does this mean?”

Tezuka didn’t answer.

Fuji sighed and got up from the bed where he’d been waiting for almost twenty minutes. He laid his hands on Tezuka’s shoulders, gently rubbing back and forth.

“What does this mean for us?” he asked again, quietly this time.

“Nothing, Fuji. Nothing’s changed,” Tezuka replied irritably, closing the science book he’d been studying from.

Fuji instantly let go. Though it was what he wanted to hear, that was not the right answer.

“Don’t lie to me, Tezuka,” he scolded, more hurt than angry. “If that was true, you would have come to bed by now.”

Tezuka turned to look at Fuji. “Is that what this is about?” He smiled—instantly alerting Fuji to the fact that he was faking it, because Tezuka never smiled when he was simply amused. “I can come to bed now,” he murmured, leaning up to kiss the tensai’s pursed lips.

Now Fuji was angry. So angry he wanted to cry. He held Tezuka off, glaring into his lover’s eyes. 

“You’re still in love with him,” Fuji whispered.

He would have loved to scream at Tezuka but if he tried to speak any louder he really would cry. It was one thing to know your boyfriend loved someone else. It wa; quite another when that someone else showed up after two years and was suddenly back in both your lives, older, more attractive, and more of a threat to your relationship than ever before.

“I’m not in love with him, Fuji,” Tezuka argued. “I never was.”

“Don’t LIE to me!”

This time, Fuji's voice was a cracked and brittle medium volume, tears pricking nastily at his eyes.

“Shhh,” Tezuka hissed, standing up and grabbing Fuji by the shoulders. “My mother’s asleep.”

Fuji refused to look at him. He could deal with Echizen being back. He could even live with Tezuka’s lingering feelings for the kid. But he couldn’t take Tezuka lying to his face about it. 

Was a straight answer really so much to ask for? Maybe Tezuka wasn’t breaking up with him to go and be with someone else but if he wasn’t honest, then Fuji would be the one ending their relationship.

He struggled as Tezuka pulled him closer but eventually relaxed into the warm, strong arms that had become his once the competition disappeared. He loved Tezuka so much. He didn’t want to lose what they had.

“I’m sorry,” Tezuka whispered. “I’m sorry. I’ll be truthful.”

Fuji clung to his lover, waiting to hear the inevitable.

“I love you, Fuji. I mean it!” Tezuka added when Fuji struggled once more to break his grip. “You’re right. I have always loved Echizen… and I still do, but that doesn’t change how I feel about you. I need you, Fuji. I can’t even imagine living without you.”

“If you think-”

“Just because he’s back, and just because I love him, doesn’t mean I’m going to let you go just to chase after someone who probably isn’t interested in me in the first place.” Fuji tried to cut in again but Tezuka cut him off before he could get a word out. “Even if he was, I still wouldn’t leave you.”

Sighing, Fuji realized that he couldn’t ask for more reassurance than that. He wished Tezuka would honestly say that he didn’t love Echizen and that Fuji was the only one for him but that wasn’t going to happen. He'd asked for the truth and he could only hope that he had gotten it. 

He had endeavored to accept Tezuka’s feelings for Echizen when they had first started dating, after the kid left for good... but it wasn’t for good. He’d always known this day would come so why was he so surprised? After all, he still had Tezuka. That was all that mattered.

Slowly pulling out of Tezuka’s arms to show that he was no longer fighting, Fuji pulled off his shirt and tossed it onto the desk.

“Prove it,” he said, his voice husky from sneaky tears that had fought their way free. “Prove you’re still mine.”

“Gladly.”

Now, Tezuka did smile for real. He gently took Fuji’s face in his hands and leaned in to kiss the tensai sweetly and gently.

Eager to latch on to what he had, Fuji kissed Tezuka back passionately, completely changing the pace of the kiss. So Fuji had to share his lover’s feelings… There was one thing he had that Echizen didn’t.

Some people might say that physicality is a pale reflection of the pure love in one’s heart. Those people must never have met Tezuka or Fuji, and certainly never seen the two of them together.

Making love wasn’t just a sugar coated metaphor with them. As Tezuka slowly entered Fuji’s body, the tensai felt like there was nothing between them. There was no physical or emotional barrier keeping them apart, and there was no one else in the world but the two of them. 

This moment, this closeness to the one he loved… This was what Fuji lived for.

He gasped, arching his back. His fingers, clasped with Tezuka’s, squeezed tightly as a low moan escaped his throat. 

Tezuka knew his body so well. The captain had entered him at the perfect angle to scrape his prostate, sending a waves of pleasure through him.

“I love you,” Tezuka breathed in a teasing sing-song as he pulled back a little and then filled Fuji once more.

Apparently Tezuka had taken Fuji’s challenge seriously. He was proving who he belonged to by utilizing his intimate knowledge of the tensai’s body to create the ultimate, euphoric state of ecstasy.

He was succeeding very, very well, too. Fuji was trembling and panting by the time Tezuka was fully buried inside of him. He wanted nothing more than to feel his lover moving within him, their skin sliding together, their breath mingling…

But Tezuka didn’t move. He wrapped his arms around Fuji, choosing that moment to hold the tensai tightly and whisper, “I promise. No matter what happens, I will never leave you.”

Fuji struggled to calm himself and think clearly. He knew Tezuka was manipulating him perfectly; drowning him in lust and then saying the exact thing he needed to hear right. He knew that, and he tried to find fault with it, but the truth was, he didn’t want to, so he ran his hand up the back of Tezuka’s neck, up through short, soft hair, and pulled him down for a loving kiss.

As they kissed—long, deep, and with increasing intensity—Tezuka began to rock his hips, only a little at first, though as hard as he could with such small thrusts. Neither of them was going to last long in the tangled state of love and lust they were embroiled in.

Though it felt like an ages, it was actually within moments that Tezuka began driving hard into Fuji. As their bodies rocked and swayed more wildly, they could no longer maintain the kiss. Reluctant to lose that wonderful, sexy kiss, their tongues slid apart but Tezuka’s lips remained on Fuji’s, slipping as they moved, but still maintaining that sweet contact.

"Love you," Fuji whispered, though he could barely breathe and all the sound that came out was a gratified squeak.

He knew Tezuka felt it, and mouthed the same back just as his muscular body seized up and he began to tremble. A second later, a scant touch to Fuji’s hard, aching erection brought him over the edge as well, and they came together, silently, though they screamed each others' names in their minds.

When he recovered, Fuji opened his eyes to see Tezuka’s face very close to his. The captain’s eyes were still closed as though he didn’t want to let go of the amazing orgasm.

Smiling genuinely, Fuji reached up to brush his thumb over Tezuka’s lips. Slowly, the slightly swollen, moist lips parted and drew Fuji’s thumb between them. However, instead of sucking on it like Fuji expected, Tezuka opened his eyes as he gently bit the digit, holding it between his teeth.

It was a reminder that Fuji trusted the captain with his body, and that he should do the same with his heart. Well, fine. Just this once, Fuji could let go of his doubts and trust in Tezuka because if he couldn’t trust Tezuka now, then he would never be able to do so.


	5. Chapter 5

“Oi! Echizen! Hey, since you’re such a big shot now, how about you and I hit the nearest burger joint, your treat!” Momo suggested.

Kikumaru’s ears practically twitched as he heard O’chibi’s answer.

“I still have the utmost respect for my senpais,” he said blandly. “But if you’re broke I suppose I could just eat at home…”

Momo whined. Literally whined—like the kind of sound dogs make when you refuse to feed them scraps from the dinner table. “Echize~n!” In a split second he was on Kikumaru, who was trying not to grin from ear to ear. “Senpai… Your vaulting return was spectacular today. We should celebrate-”

“Hoi, I don’t know if my poor little wallet can handle your celebrations, Momo-chan.” Kikumaru pretended to think it over. “Well, I guess it can’t be helped. But you have to learn the meaning of moderation! Mo-der-a-tion!”

After teasing his kouhai some more, Kikumaru crept up behind Oishi and then grinned in his lover’s face. “Cook for me tonight?” he pleaded quietly.

Oishi laughed. “Won’t you be full up on burgers?”

“Nya, Oishi, feeding those two? I’ll be broke!” Kikumaru wheedled expertly, scrunching up his face. 

His lover wasn’t to be won over quite so easily. “When was the last time your mother cooked you dinner?” he asked. “Don’t you think you should eat at home every once in a while?”

Kikumaru made another face. “Mom likes it when I eat with you. One less nuisance to cook for.” He grinned. “I’ll never understand how my sisters can eat so much and not be fat!”

“Okay, okay!” sighed Oishi, giving in with a big smile. “I’ll cook for you, Eiji,” he said, leaning forward to press a gentle kiss to Kikumaru’s lips. He loved it how Oishi called him by his first name. “But,” Oishi added, his lips lingering very close to Kikumaru’s, who wanted to kiss them more, “Only if you stay over tonight.”

As if Kikumaru had ever planned otherwise. He slid his arms around Oishi’s waist and nodded. “Will we have the house to ourselves?” he asked suggestively.

“Entirely,” Oishi purred, and Kikumaru felt his body respond to the sheer anticipation in that one word.

“See you tonight then,” he whispered. He kissed Oishi deeply right then, because he needed to, and it was only when he heard laughter that he remembered the rest of the team were all right there.

It was Fuji laughing. “It seems that no-one remembered to write Echizen the less shocking gossip.”

Kikumaru turned around to see O’chibi standing by the door with Momo, ready to go. His face was bright red and he didn’t quite seem to know where to look.

Momo ruffled his hair, grinning. “Looks like we have a lot to fill you in on!” he crowed, saving the moment.

Kikumaru had been tense, unsure of what O’chibi would say or what he would think, but Echizen responded well to Momo’s comment and recovered quickly. Before long, Kikumaru was herded out, calling a goodbye to Oishi over his shoulder.

The three of them joked and laughed all the way to the burger joint and for a little while, it felt like old times. Sadly for Kikumaru’s pocket, this was not so. Both Momo and O’chibi ordered far more than they ever had done in middle school.

However, while Momo wolfed down his burgers, Echizen ate a little more slowly and thoughtfully than Kikumaru had anticipated. After three burgers, he actually turned to make conversation.

“So, you and Oishi-senpai...?”

Never had Kikumaru ever been embarrassed by his relationship with Oishi. He’d never blushed or stuttered or tried to hide the truth from anyone.

When Echizen asked, he found he didn’t really know what to say and that shocked him. After several seconds of silence, he just decided to blurt it out and get it over with.

“We’ve been lovers since you left,” he said in a rush, kicking himself for the way it sounded. “That is, since winning the Nationals that year…” He laughed, slightly nervously, rubbing the back of his head. “I know, it’s probably a bit of a surprise, but-”

“Not really,” O’chibi muttered.

“Oh… Well… I guess not.”

There was a slight awkward silence and then Kikumaru continued just because he couldn’t stand not knowing what was going on inside Echizen’s head. “Actually, I think Oishi and I were probably the last to figure it out, so when we made it official-”

Momo suddenly cracked up laughing. “You should have been there, Echizen!” he cried. “They were both blushing and nervous as hell, and when Oishi finally stammered it out, everyone just stared at them for a few seconds, muttered ‘we know’ at the same time, and then went back to their business. They’d made this big deal about ‘an announcement’ and we all thought they were going to break up as a doubles team!”

Echizen grinned, and without saying anything, he returned to his burgers. After inhaling about five, he paused mid-chew, his head cocked to the side. Swallowing, he looked at first Momo then Kikumaru.

“Is there anything else I should know?” he asked. “Anyone else…?”

“Gay?” Momo prompted at the same time as Kikumaru asked, “Dating?”

“Uh, yeah…” Echizen agreed to both.

Kikumaru had been about to reply before Momo stepped in.

“What do you think?” he asked, innocently shoving a burger into his mouth.

Echizen stared at his own tray for a few seconds, then didn’t look up as he spoke. “Fuji-senpai and Tezuka-buchou… Are they-?”

“Yes,” Kikumaru answered, irritated by the slightly bitter sound to his hurried answer. 

He couldn’t help feeling a little jealous. He had been almost sure O’chibi was jealous over him and Oishi, but when it came to Fuji and Tezuka, the reaction was obvious. O’chibi was practically green.

“Ah,” Echizen muttered, picking up another burger.

“Echizen,” Momo cut in seriously before he could hide behind his food. “What do you think about that?”

“They’re a good couple,” Echizen answered a little too quickly.

Jealousy burning down in the face of his O’chibi’s badly hidden disappointment, Kikumaru flopped down cutely on the bench, staring up at Echizen with his eyes as big and round as he could possibly make them.

“Everybody really missed you, you know,” he said. When that cheered O’chibi up just a little, he softly muttered. “Everyone.”

Again, Momo was their savior. “Wanna know a secret?” he stage-whispered conspiratorially. “There’s another couple that you’ll never guess!”

Echizen frowned and Kikumaru slowly grinned. Good one, Momo.

He laughed. “Not in a million years! This is a hard one, O’chibi!”

“Kaidoh and Inui,” Echizen responded to the challenge.

Kikumaru made a ‘wrong’ game show noise.

Echizen bit a chunk out of his burger, chewing thoughtfully once more.

“Inui and Kawamura?”

Kikumaru shook his head.

“Horio and Momo?” he tried, glancing to his right.

“No!” Momo cried indignantly. “I have a certain respect for personal hygiene, if you know what I mean.”

O’chibi laughed. “So, is anyone straight?” he asked.

Kikumaru feigned thinking, though the question was answered easily enough. He went through various ‘professor’ poses, and then finally shook his head, grinning. “Nya! Not a one!”

Momo grinned even wider. “We thought you might be,” he teased.

O’chibi blushed and shook his head. 

Curiosity finally threatened to suffocate Kikumaru. “Okay, so who is it?” he asked bluntly. “Fuji or Tezuka?”

Echizen glanced at him from the corner of his eye. “Who says I like either of them?” he muttered. “Maybe it’s you.”

There was a challenge in his eyes that Kikumaru knew not to take seriously, though he wished terribly that it was true. He was forced to re-evaluate his feelings a little. Judging by how much he loved Oishi, this had to be more than a crush as he’d originally thought or he’d have a much easier time remembering that he had a loving boyfriend waiting for him to come home for dinner.

“Well, then you’d have to play Oishi for him,” Momo joked, oblivious to the silent exchange going on right beside him.

Finally O’chibi looked away. “And what about you, Momo senpai? Do I have to fight anyone for you?”

“You’re just trying to get hints,” Momo argued, jabbing Echizen in the ribs. “You won’t get a word out of me!”

Echizen sighed. “Kaidoh and Kawamura.”

Kikumaru giggled. If only he knew. “Nope.”

“Kawamura and Momo.”

“Hey! Why am I at the bottom of that order?” Momo questioned with suspicion.

“I didn’t mean it in any particular order,” O’chibi complained. “And I don’t want to know!” he added. “Am I right, or wrong?”

“Well, unless he’s holding a racket, Kawamura is definitely a bottom, and, no, I’m not dating him,” Momo replied a little haughtily.

“Can I rule out Horio?” Echizen asked wearily.

“Definitely,” Kikumaru agreed. In the lull, as Echizen continued to eat and think, Kikumaru realized his earlier question hadn’t been answered satisfactorily. He was going to have to squeeze a straight answer out somehow. “What would you say if I said I think Tezuka’s been pining for you since you left?”

“Kikumaru-senapi!” Momo scolded.

“Don’t tell me it’s not true,” Kikumaru snapped back, defending his revelation.

Momo seemed uncomfortable. “Maybe, but…”

“Momo, it’s just us three. I wouldn’t say it to anyone else,” Kikumaru sighed, now feeling bad that he’d pushed the subject.

“Momo and Inui,” Echizen muttered quietly, staring straight ahead, his burger hanging limply in his hands.

“It’s not Inui,” Momo replied just as quietly.

“O’chibi,” Kikumaru crooned. “You’ve been away for too long. Don’t make me dance around this question for weeks, we have so much else to catch up on…”

“It’s both.” Echizen slowly placed his burger down, staring at its half eaten bun. “I… like them both.”

Momo was uncharacteristically quiet, staring at Echizen with raised eyebrows. This one was up to Kikumaru.

He felt awful. Tezuka and Fuji were very deeply involved with one another, even if Tezuka had in fact been pining for Echizen. He would never leave Fuji, and Fuji wouldn’t let him go. Nor did Kikumaru want to see those two break up, but he did want Echizen to be as happy as the rest of them were turning out to be. 

The truth was, he was becoming very confused, very fast. He loved Oishi. He really, truly did. But while he and Oishi were very happy together, O’chibi suddenly seemed very alone.

Something in Kikumaru told him that Echizen should be with one of their team. It just seemed right. However, something that only he knew was that Kawamura and Inui were indeed seeing each other privately, and that left only two others who were otherwise involved as well.

While his thoughts spun wildly out of control, Kikumaru’s hand wandered. Before he knew it, he was very lightly brushing the side of Echizen’s thigh under the table. Yet, once he realized, he didn’t stop. 

He should have. He knew that. He knew O’chibi had noticed. But he couldn’t stop. 

It was just a brush. Just a subtle little touch. It didn’t mean anything, just a little comfort. Right?

Suddenly, Echizen sat up very straight, and Kikumaru thought he’d gone too far, but then he very slowly turned to face Momo.

“The only one left is… Kaidoh. You’re… and Kaidoh…? But… but…”

“Took you long enough!” Momo confirmed, looking relieved that the tension had been split.

Kikumaru slowly withdrew his hand, folding it with the other under his chin and smiling. “Can you believe it? It’s been a year and I still can’t.”

“But you’re still arguing! How could that possibly be a healthy relationship?” After a few seconds, O’chibi blushed. “I mean… Sorry. I wasn’t saying that-”

“I never said it was a healthy relationship,” Momo cut in. His eyes were twinkling with mischief. “But we manage. You know what they say: opposites attract.”

“There’s a flaw in your theory,” O’chibi pointed out.

“What?” Momo asked, frowning and suddenly paranoid about being proven wrong.

“You and Kaidoh aren’t opposites. You argue cause you’re too much alike.”

Kikumaru burst out laughing. “That’s true! You two are nothing like me and Oishi. We really are opposites!”

“Not everyone can be the Golden Pair,” Momo muttered resentfully, though he was smirking.

Yet again, Kikumaru was feeling bad for blurting out his thoughts. Just rub it in O’chibi’s face, that’s right… And after that intimate… No, it wasn’t intimate. It was innocent! Innocent!

“To be fair, you and Kaidoh make a good doubles team, although I was sure he and Inui…”

“Yeah, yeah, don’t remind me,” Momo grumbled, returning to his last, lonely burger.

O’chibi was already deep into his fries, so Kikumaru just watched his two kouhai eat, wondering what the hell he was going to do about this new development. He just kept coming back to the thought that he couldn’t bear hurting Oishi.


	6. Chapter 6

Oishi sighed. He knew when his boyfriend was distracted. Hell, he had always been able to tell when his ‘partner’ was distracted. Granted, there wasn’t much difference in their relationship aside from a certain development in physical intimacy, but he could read Eiji even better now than he had been able to a year previously, and that was saying a lot.

Eiji was distracted. He’d been distracted before, during, and after dinner. He’d been distracted while they did homework together. He’d even been distracted while they made love. And he was distracted now.

Oh, he was good at disguising it but Oishi could tell, and though he was intensely curious, he was afraid to ask. Eiji could get snappy when there was something on his mind.

Cuddling closer to the figure spooned in his arms, Oishi licked and nibbled that spot behind Eiji’s ear. “A yen for your thoughts?” he sighed, rather innocently, he believed.

“Who says I’m thinking anything?” Eiji retorted defensively.

If he wasn’t convinced before, Oishi was certainly convinced now. “You have to be thinking something,” he argued. 

Eiji was quiet for a moment and he shifted uncomfortably. “Doesn’t mean my thoughts would be very interesting,” he muttered eventually.

Normally, Eiji would realize that he was just giving himself away completely and snap back to his usual, cheery, bright personality. It was a testament to just how distracted he was that he continued digging himself into a hole.

“I love you, Eiji,” Oishi crooned, hoping to draw his boyfriend out of that sullen shell.

No luck.

“I love you, too, Oishi,” Eiji replied simply.

Comforted by the warmth and truth in that statement, Oishi let it go. He was getting nothing out of Eiji tonight. Maybe his boyfriend was just tired. His stamina had improved a lot but studying seemed to tire Eiji far more than physical exertion and they had a huge workload this year as seniors.

“Goodnight,” he whispered, kissing Eiji softly on the cheek.

“Goodnight, lover,” Eiji replied, sounding more like his usual self.

Oishi smiled happily as he settled. He liked it when Eiji called him that.

*

Ryouma slowly ran his fingers through Karupin’s hair; his eyes glued to the floor, his mind a million miles away. He hadn’t been surprised at the revelation of Oishi and Kikumaru’s relationship, though a little surprised that they were so public about it. He’d been absolutely shocked to hear bout Momo and Kaidoh, on the other hand.

He wasn’t at all surprised about Fuji and Tezuka-buchou. Depressed, but not surprised. He had so hoped that maybe he would have a chance with Tezuka—just maybe. Two years of traveling the pro circuit, lonely and missing his buchou… It was a nice dream to think that he might be able to spend a little time in Tezuka’s arms once he was back.

The revelation that he loved Fuji-senpai hadn’t changed things. He’d still been longing for Tezuka for a long time. It would be one thing if one or the other was in a relationship. He could probably learn to let it go if he was faced with at least the hope of one of them returning his feelings. The fact that Tezuka and Fuji were with each other was like rubbing salt into a wound.

No, he hadn’t been surprised at all, but still he reacted like he’d been slapped in the face. Surprise was one thing. The death of hope was another entirely.

Ryouma didn’t entertain any hope of seducing one away from the other. If Tezuka and Fuji were happy together, then they deserved to be so.

On that note… Just what had Kikumaru-senpai been thinking while Ryouma had mused on Fuji and Tezuka? He hadn’t noticed it right away but Kikumaru had been softly touching him. At first he thought it was a fluke, but the light stroke of his thigh had continued until he realized that Kikumaru was doing it on purpose.

Ryouma reasoned that it was probably meant as a gesture of comfort. It made sense. Ryouma was obviously distressed, and Kikumaru, as a good friend, wanted to lend him a little strength. After all, Kikumaru and Oishi were very close, and seemed very much in love.

So why did Ryouma get the feeling that Kikumaru had been sending him very strong signals all afternoon?

Feeling guilty, Ryouma considered the scenario that Kikumaru really had been coming on to him. Did that mean things with Oishi weren’t as stable as they seemed? Or did it just mean that Kikumaru-senpai was struggling with similar feelings to Ryouma’s?

Did he, too, find himself liking more than one person at once? Had he always? Was he just responding to some subtle manifestation of the crush Ryouma still had for him?

It was all very confusing and Ryouma absolutely hated to dwell on it. He wished he could just forget all of his stupid feelings, especially since Tezuka and Fuji were out of his grasp.

Sometimes, Ryouma wished that Karupin was a person. His cat was the only one that never confused him, never hurt him, and loved him unconditionally—as long as he fed her. Really, what was a few tins of cat food or pieces of fish compared to a solid friend and companion?

Suddenly, Ryouma was assailed with a very bizarre image.

A very content Ryouma scratched Kikumaru-senpai behind the ears while Fuji-senpai tangled himself up, batting at a ball of string. Meanwhile, Tezuka-buchou stared at him emotionlessly, holding a wet fish in his bare hands as if wondering what he was supposed to do with such a thing.

The scene was so ridiculous that Ryouma chuckled nervously. It brought a smile to his face, though, and he sighed in relief, the stress seeping from his body. 

He really needed to stop worrying and just enjoy his break. If he kept on like that, then the year would be over before he knew it, and he would regret ever taking time off just to sink into disappointment and depression.

It was a relaxed and smiling Ryouma that cuddled his kitten as he curled up in bed, a harem of neko bishounen parading around in his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big biiig biiiiiiiiig thanks to Stargirl1180 who drew this awesome pic!
> 
> Kitty Capers: http://www.fanart-central.net/pic-545054.html


	7. Chapter 7

Over the week, Ryouma re-bonded with his old friends, slipping back into school life. It was a relief, even if it took some effort. He was assessed by teachers and given approval to stay in his correct grade. He also trained with the first years at tennis practice. 

Many who knew him grumbled over this, but as Tezuka had quietly said to him, it was a formality and a precaution, only. After witnessing his victory over Akae, no-one doubted Ryouma’s skill. He would participate in the early ranking tournament the next week, and secure his rightful spot with the regulars before they went to train up in the mountains before the prefecturals. 

Something about the way Tezuka said this made Ryouma smirk. Somehow, he didn’t think Akae-san would be joining them.

So, he bode his time, quietly enduring racket swinging, laps, and ball collecting. A pleasant surprise was that not only Horio—with his now five years of tennis experience—but Katsuo and Kachiro had improved as well. In fact, they had proudly exclaimed that they’d played doubles on the Seigaku Middle school regulars team last year. Horio had played singles three. 

The previous captain from that year was on the team as well. Ryouma didn’t really like him. He seemed to challenge Tezuka a lot—if not vocally, then by glaring at the captain.

Sonoda-san would also be participating in the ranking tournament, and Ryouma couldn’t wait to crush him. For Tezuka.

*

On Friday night, Eiji was pleasantly surprised by Oishi’s thoughtfulness.

“Yahoi! Mini golf!” he cried. “Oishi, we should invite the whole team!”

Oishi sighed. He’d been expecting that. So much for a nice weekend out with his boyfriend. Not that Oishi really minded, though he was a little self conscious this week… Anyway:

“I already asked Tezuka. He said he and Fuji will be going to watch an exhibition match in Chiba over the weekend.”

“Oh.” Eiji pouted. “So, no Prince of Golf tournament, then?”

Oishi chuckled. The team had gotten into a bit of a habit of playing other games over the years to relax and enjoy themselves. 

“Well, maybe a little one. Kaidoh and Momo can still make it, and Inui agreed. He offered to ask Taka-san, too, so…”

“So o’chibi and the others can come, too!” Eiji cried, ecstatically.

Oishi nodded. “We should, of course, invite Akae-san,” he said, almost warningly.

Eiji crinkled up his nose. “Fine. What if we cut it down to just O’chibi and Taka-san and call it a regulars reunion?” he asked, hopefully.

As it turned out, the first years had arranged to practice on Saturday and Akae-san just happened to miss the phone call, though Oishi wondered if he’d done the right thing allowing Eiji to call… So, aside from Tezuka and Fuji, it really was a regulars reunion. Oishi just hoped he got at least a little of Eiji to himself amidst all the excitement.

*

“Another hole in one, O’chibi!” Kikumaru cried out in joy. 

He’d lost long ago. Mini golf just didn’t lend itself to acrobatics. 

Inui was out, too. Apparently mini golf was completely illogical. Taka-san was still in, barely, but his power play often caused balls to fly right out of the golf course. They’d all winced when they heard a scream from the direction of the outdoor café. Kaidoh and Momo were hanging on very well, as was Oishi. Meanwhile, Echizen kept scoring hole in one after hole in one.

“How do you do it?” Kikumaru whispered conspiratorially.

“If I told you, I’d have to kill you,” Echizen replied, deadpan.

“Nya! No fair, O’chibi! You wouldn’t kill your cute, attractive, loving, loyal Kikumaru-senpai, would you?” Kikumaru wheedled, walking backwards in front of the stubborn first-year.

Echizen suddenly grinned, the sight making Kikumaru’s blood run cold for some reason. “If I do tell you, then… What’s in it for me?”

Kikumaru pretended to think. “Me?” he teased, wondering why—if he was teasing—he kept his voice quiet enough that Oishi couldn’t hear back at the starting tee. 

He expected a witty rebuttal such as ‘How about something I actually want?’ but instead received a blank, unreadable stare.

Echizen, turning his focus to Kaidoh’s Boomerang Snake coming around the corner, answered in a slightly flat voice. “I did some cross-training for precision while I was on the pro circuit.”

“Oh.” 

Suddenly the joke didn’t seem so funny. Echizen had answered. Did he expect to get his prize? Kikumaru wasn’t sure if he hoped so or not. 

He grinned, maybe a little nervously, as Oishi caught up to them, announcing his hole in two on such a touchy hole. Congratulating his boyfriend, Kikumaru almost forgot to duck Taka’s shot, which barely flew over his head.

“Ah! Sorry, sorry!” the sushi-chef called out.

Laughing, they all observed Momo’s impressive shot as a falling leaf ‘just’ knocked the ball into the hole.

*

All in all, it was a good day. Ryouma sat in a sun drenched chair at the café, his cap pulled low over his eyes as he sipped at a Ponta.

He’d won, of course. Mini golf was nothing compared to tennis once one got the basics down. His dad’s special cross-training paid off.

However, the highlight of the day had been in watching Momo and Kaidoh. They still fought raucously—especially at school—but when Momo finally lost to Ryouma, disappointed in his miss-hit, Kaidoh had comforted him instead of goading. He murmured something into Momo’s ear, making him blush, and his manly pat on the back lingered just a moment or two too long.

It was rather cute, really.

Come to think of it, so was the way that Inui-senpai and Kawamura-senpai sat beside each other so comfortably, Inui ordering for the two of them so subtly you wouldn’t have noticed if you weren’t paying full attention. 

From what Ryouma remembered, Inui had never really seemed comfortable with anyone, no matter how much he knew about them. He was, now. With Kawamura.

Echizen would have felt out of place surrounded by these couples. He should have. He’d almost have been glad to be.

But the truth was, he didn’t feel left out at all. In fact, he knew that the one who was most left out was Oishi. It was unsettling to Ryouma, but he knew no one but he, Oishi-senpai, and Kikumaru-senpai were aware of that shift in balance, and so he let it slide. The others didn’t need to know.

It was best if he just forgot about it, really.

But no matter how hard he tried, Kikumaru kept accidentally reminding him.

”Inui-senpai… That had better not be the prize,” Ryouma hissed suddenly, sighting the large glass of… something, that was heading towards them.

“Ah, not quite,” Inui said with a grin. “Actually, that’s the special order I made in preparation for the loser… Kikumaru-san.”

The grin melted from Kikumaru’s face, and he went absolutely pale.

“No…” he whispered. “No, this was just for fun, right? I mean, we’re not even all here! Inui, you can’t possibly expect me to drink that!” No answer. Kikumaru turned tearful, wavering eyes on Ryouma. “O’chibi? You won’t let him, will you?”

Ryouma was about to apologize for Kikumaru’s misfortune when a foolish and brave act stunned them all. Oishi leaped up from his chair, grabbed the glass, and drained it. He wavered on his feet, blinked a couple of times, and then burped.

“E-excuse me!” he cried, covering his mouth with both hands.

“Oishi! You survived!” Kikumaru shrieked in shock and relief.

“… That was just juice,” Oishi muttered, in a mild state of shock. “Just juice…”

“Yes, sir,” the waiter agreed. “That would be our Fruit Fair Special. Tasty and healthy.”

Inui cleared his throat. “Uh, yes. I thought the loser could use a consolation.”

Ryouma narrowed his eyes at the data specialist. That had to be Kawamura’s influence… Suddenly, he was heartily approving of that partnership.

Kikumaru slowly rose from his seat. “Oishi…” he whispered in awe. “You… You didn’t know… You drank that for me!”

“Uh… yes,” Oishi agreed with a blush, casting the faintest of glances towards Ryouma. “I know how you hate Inui’s juices and—no offense, Inui—I just… I… well…”

“Oishi!” Kikumaru threw his arms around Oishi’s neck, strangling the vice captain. “That was so brave!”

And so, the spiraling situation got back on its feet. Ryouma was both relieved and just a little disappointed that Kikumaru and Oishi were going to be okay. After all, they belonged together.

But who did Ryouma belong with?


	8. Chapter 8

Tezuka was in a great mood on Monday. He and Fuji had spent the weekend together in a hotel. The exhibition match had been worth the trip but, more importantly, so was the night Tezuka and Fuji had spent together, away from home. They’d gone to an expensive restaurant for dinner and had a great time chatting about the exciting match and just enjoying being with one another. Afterwards, they curled up in bed and watched a movie, both content to just drift off to sleep in each others’ arms.

It wasn’t sexy or romantic, but it was what they needed. It was sweet, and comfortable, and they were happy. It was a relief to feel so close after the tense week they had experienced.

So, on Monday, as Tezuka ran his eyes over the block placements for the ranking tournament, he felt secure that he was making the right decision.

*

Fuji smiled at the whiteboard. At least, outwardly, he did.

Inwardly, he both grinned and growled. Tezuka was clever. He really was. Sonoda would lose to Echizen, then he and Akae would fight it out for the previous captain to stay in the competition. No matter which lost, they would then play Fuji—who would win, naturally. Then Akae would play Echizen. The outcome of that match had already been foretold on the day of Echizen’s arrival.

So, Fuji and Echizen would play the last match in that block as the two undefeated players. Their combined presence in Block B would ensure that neither Sonoda nor Akae made it into the regulars. However, Tezuka seemed to be relying on Fuji’s complacence. 

Fuji had a record of never playing full out against an opponent unless he had good reason. The fact that whoever won between him and Echizen would play singles 2 was not quite reason enough. The fact that Fuji needed to beat Echizen into the ground and crush the brat was plenty of reason. Echizen needed to know that Fuji was NOT going to take Tezuka’s distraction lying down. In fact, Tezuka needed to know that as well, or he’d never have provoked this situation.

Oh, Fuji had enjoyed the weekend well enough. He’d been thrilled with Tezuka’s invitation, and jumped at the chance to deepen their bond without any talented little brats running about playing pillar… But if Tezuka thought Fuji was going to let his guard down every time things seemed alright, then the captain had another thing coming.

*

On Monday afternoon, Ryouma beat Sonoda 6-2. On Tuesday morning, Sonoda thrashed Akae 6-0 out of desperation. On Wednesday morning, Fuji beat them both 6-4. Wednesday afternoon saw Akae lose 6-1 to Ryouma.

By Friday afternoon, Ryouma was excited and nervous. He had never played Fuji-senpai in a full game before. He also had not played the tensai seriously, and he hoped that Fuji planned to go all out, today. 

Maybe that was why Fuji had been—supposedly subtly—watching him all morning and during warm-up in the afternoon. Although, Ryouma’s stupid inner teenaged boy wanted to suggest Fuji was watching him for other reasons.

“Hey, brat!” Akae sneered as he walked past Ryouma. “When the tensai thrashes you, I’ll be waiting.”

Ryouma ignored him, although Kikumaru-senpai, who’d caught the muttered challenge, shrieked with laughter. 

“Are you that eager to be humiliated? Fujiko would go easy on you, but you can bet O'chibi won’t if it comes down to it!” the acrobat cried out for all to hear.

Ryouma couldn’t help it. He smirked to himself, lowered his cap further, and then served to Katsuo who was helping him warm up.

*

Fuji let the ball fall from his fingers with a heavy spin. Oh… Echizen would very much regret handing him first serve…

“I was hoping you’d use that, Fuji-senpai,” Echizen muttered eagerly.

Fuji’s eyes opened in the split second before he hit the ball. Echizen couldn’t possibly expect to return his disappearing serve. 

And he didn’t. 40-0 later, Fuji held the ball ready. Echizen had been close, but he couldn’t return a serve that no longer existed in the space it should have been in…

“It’s far too early for you to beat me,” he said, meaning much more than this one game.

“Try saying that after this point is won,” Echizen snapped, settling into the receiving position.

Narrowing his eyes, Fuji spun the ball. As he hit it, Echizen closed his eyes and straightened. The ball flew towards him rather commonly, then shimmered and disappeared.

Only to reappear against Echizen’s racket, before flying back to Fuji’s side of the court. The return was in, and too wide for Fuji to reach. 

The disappearing serve was broken.

Momentarily stunned, Fuji stared after the ball, then slowly turned back to Echizen, his smile resurfacing.

“As expected of you, Echizen,” he said with a slight dip of his head.

He had, indeed, thought that Echizen would return his serve during the match, but not this soon. Not at all this soon.

Time for a change of tactics. Abandoning the broken serve, Fuji sent the ball into play, initiating a rally.

Echizen expected a trap to lure him into one of Fuji’s counters, but Fuji was a step ahead. He hit a drop volley just as the first year expected a chance ball for a smash, securing the game.

“Echizen… It’s far too early for you to beat me,” Fuji repeated, having won the first game.

*

Ryouma wasn’t sure what had provoked Fuji into playing all out but he had not enjoyed a game this much in a long time. He felt alive, trying to outwit his sneaky, tensai of a senpai.

Fuji was throwing everything at him. Every applicable counter, ever serve, every attack… and one by one, he broke them. One by one, he sent them flying back. Time after time, he scored.

Sometimes he made the return after up to four observances. Sometimes he made it the first time. However, the points were adding up and he was a game down at 5-4. If he was going to play singles two, then he had to pull out all the stops.

*

Fuji felt a sliver of ice creep up his spine as the ball rolled sedately to his feet.

He’d lost. He’d fought with everything he had, and he’d lost. To Echizen. To the one person he was ever afraid of losing Tezuka to.

Echizen approached the net and Fuji somehow found the will to move his feet. He extended his hand.

“Fuji-senpai,” Echizen said quietly, holding fast to his hand and not letting it go. “That was a great game. One wrong move and I would have lost.”

Fuji wasn’t sure he could speak. He couldn’t shake the sense of doom that had fallen over him.

“Senpai… I… really want to play you again some time,” Echizen breathed.

That snapped Fuji out of it. He studied the boys eyes, his body language, the hand still holding fast to his own… and came to a shocking realization.

It wasn’t Tezuka that Echizen was interested in. It was Fuji.


	9. Chapter 9

“Kaidoh…”

“Mmm?” Kaidoh hummed, his lips pressed against Momo’s neck.

Despite the tingle of Kaidoh’s lips on his skin, the pressure of that strong, muscular chest against his back, and the fingers that were creeping inside his shirt, Momo persisted with the question that was bugging him. 

“Do you think something’s up with Echizen?”

Kaidoh’s hands stilled, and he slowly lifted his mouth from Momo’s neck. “Why do you ask? He has been away for two years. We don’t really know how much he’s changed.”

“Maybe I should rephrase…” Momo took a deep breath. He hated to say this. “Do you think something is going on with Echizen and Kikumaru-senpai? I mean, have you noticed them acting strangely at all?”

“Kikumaru-senpai is always strange,” Kaidoh answered bluntly.

“I’m serious,” Momo sighed, pulling away so he could turn and face his lover. “I really think something is going on with those two.”

Kaidoh hissed. It was one of his time-filling hisses, giving him a chance to form his answer whilst letting off a touch of frustration.

“I don’t think it’s any of our business,” he said at last. “But… If you would rather think about that than be with me, I can always go home…”

Momo grinned. “I see your point… viper.”

“Shut up. Stupid gossiping idiot.”

“Make me.”

Unfortunately, the kiss that Kaidoh initiated to shut Momo up backfired gravely.

Momoshiro was very loud in bed.

*

Fuji was never one to pass up an opportunity. Just because he was jealous of Tezuka’s feelings for Echizen, and just because he trusted his lover, didn’t mean he wasn’t going to capitalize on the surprise of Echizen’s feelings for himself. 

It was his turn to make Tezuka jealous.

Oh, he would never cheat on his lover, or openly pose an invitation for such, but that wouldn’t stop him from encouraging Echizen’s attraction. All the better for Tezuka to see that he was stuck with Fuji for better or worse.

Thus, he invited Echizen out to play some tennis the next day. However, they never quite made it to the street courts. Rather, Fuji was ‘distracted’ by a lovely little coffee shop that he dragged Echizen into, and somehow the day got lost in chattering about this and that. 

Fuji was fascinated by Echizen’s pro tour stories. He’d always wondered how Echizen would cope day after day, month after month, against stronger, tougher, and more experienced players. But in the end, he proved to be the toughest of them all, and strong enough to get by. 

Technically he should have been in the juniors, but Echizen’s wild card entrance into the American Open and his finals victory against Lleyton Hewitt had opened up a huge door for him to step straight through into the tour. 

Actually, many people compared him to the Australian champion. Small, but sturdy. Both were incredibly determined, but Echizen had the edge over Hewitt with his Twist Serve—along with several other lefty moves he had developed.

Meanwhile, Fuji told Echizen all about the complicated thesis he’d written for a British psychology institute. It was all about tennis psychology and was going to be published during the year.

“Fuji-senpai, you’re incredible,” Echizen muttered to him with a small smile. 

His stable self confidence boosted up a notch or two, Fuji smiled back over the hot chocolate he’d raised to his lips. He liked the way that light shone in Echizen’s usually dormant eyes.

*

Ryouma didn’t even notice that they’d accidentally blown off tennis to sit in a café all day and talk. He didn’t even notice that he had already said more about his life over the past two years to Fuji than he had to anyone else, ever. He didn’t even notice that he was being blatantly obvious with his affection.

What he did notice, was that Fuji-senpai was not only taking time out of his weekend to spend with Ryouma, but he suddenly seemed so much closer and friendlier than he ever had two years ago. Personally so. It wasn’t like the usual Fuji who was cheerful and friendly, but not… not in any way intimate. He felt like he was truly getting to know his senpai for the first time.

He was resolved not to talk about his career thus far, but somehow Fuji just seemed to drag it out of him. And it didn’t feel like bragging. In fact, he felt oddly relieved to be sharing his experiences and receiving subtle praise and a little criticism here and there from his senpai.

He was impressed by Fuji’s stories, too. The tensai somehow managed to pull off a fairly average life at Seigaku whilst privately nurturing his abilities outside. Where he found the time was a mystery.

For some reason, Ryouma actually related his thoughts to his senpai, who laughed.

“You’re forgetting, Echizen-kun. Plenty of people have called you tensai as well… Isn’t it just a word?” Hints of blue sparkled at Ryouma as the tensai braced his chin in his hands.

True, Ryouma had been labeled a tensai here and there, and maybe he was a genius in some aspects of tennis, but… Fuji was different. Fuji was a true tensai extending beyond one field. He was an incredible tennis player, yes, but he was also scary smart in just about everything he set his mind to. However, Ryouma knew what he was obligated to answer, and though Fuji never showed it, he was probably uncomfortable when someone brought up his incredible talent and potential.

“I guess a word doesn’t mean much in the end. Its results that matter,” he added with a hint of challenge.

“Mmm,” Fuji agreed. “Congratulations again on crushing Nadhal,” Fuji said; almost, but not quite changing the subject.

“I lost to Fedherer,” Ryouma complained, still irritated by that match.

“You’ve beaten him before… but every game is its own reality,” Fuji told him, sounding as if he’d quoted the line from his own thesis.

“I shouldn’t have lost,” Ryouma sighed. “I think… I was just so tired of playing the same old boring people that I lost concentration.”

Now, Fuji practically cackled. “You’re unbelievable, you know that? You lose to the number one player in the world, and say it’s because you were bored of beating him.”

“I never said-”

“Ah, but you are. Don’t think I don’t know about all those unofficial matches you play to keep yourself busy,” Fuji told him. “If you played half as many tournaments as seriously, you’d have long ago broken the top five.”

When he’d dropped out of the circuit, Ryouma was ranked 8th in the world. 

“I don’t like the attention,” he complained. “The gear is great, and the prize money, too, I guess, but… too many people know who I am. I hate that.”

“Echizen… You’ve already made tennis your life. We both know you could take the top rank easily enough, and we both know that you would never be satisfied until you felt you’d earned it. That’s why you came back, isn’t it? You want to test yourself against everyone you fought beside and struggled with in the past. You want to play Sanada, Atobe, and even Tezuka.” Ryouma almost jumped as Fuji reached out and touched his hand. He raised his eyes to meet Fuji’s. “Are you disappointed in us, Ryouma?”

Ryouma was doubly jolted by the use of his given name, and the accurate hit on where his subconscious had taken him for months. He was disappointed. He had expected everyone to follow him, but for two years he felt like he’d been alone out there. For two years he’d scanned the updates of pro players. For two years he’d wondered what was taking so long.

“A little,” Ryouma answered honestly. “But I understand.”

Fuji stared into his eyes for a moment longer, then looked away. “Atobe won’t be turning pro. His family business is too important. Yukimura and Sanada will probably start out next year. Tezuka, too.” Ryouma waited. “I… don’t intend to. After this year at Seigaku, I probably won’t play competitively again.”

Ryouma was stunned. That was not what he wanted to hear. “You have to!” he argued impulsively.

Fuji looked back at him, sadly; his eyes clouded with turmoil. “I did that thesis to study myself,” he said at last. “And all I found was that I can’t do it. I wouldn’t make it, Echizen. I don’t have a fighting spirit.”

“That’s not true!” Ryouma growled. “You wanted to beat me yesterday, I know it!”

“Not for the right reasons,” Fuji whispered.

Ryouma wondered what that meant, but he tucked it away for now. “I don’t believe that. I don’t, and I won’t. I’m not giving up, and I won’t let you. I’m not going to leave you behind,” he added quietly.

*

Fuji was irritated with himself that he’d let so much slip. He’d simply enjoyed talking to Echizen so much, and the boy had shared so much more than Fuji had ever expected.

He hadn’t even told Tezuka of his decision, yet. And now Echizen knew and was determined to change his mind. But there was no changing Fuji’s mind. He knew himself too well. Only once had he ever felt that overwhelming need to win—that drive that pushed competitors to the limit. He’d had plenty of chances to experience that again since the first time he played Tezuka for real, but his game had lain dormant unless provoked by external reasons. Revenge, mostly. He just didn’t have the will to fight.

He knew that Tezuka would move on sooner or later, when Fuji stayed behind. He knew he would lose his lover to a player that Tezuka considered a worthy opponent. That was why he was so unsettled by Echizen’s reappearance. He’d accepted the possibility that they might get together once Tezuka became a pro, but he’d counted on just one more year to have Tezuka exclusively to himself.

Now, he felt like he was already on the verge of being left behind.

Something stirred ever so subtly in Fuji, a flicker of denial that did not want to give up. It went by, unnoticed.

“Ryouma,” Fuji leaned close to the boy across the table. He stared into stubborn golden eyes, then slowly smiled. “You’ve grown up.”

*

That was the second time Fuji had called him by his name, and the way the tensai stared at him sent shivers down his spine. He vaguely knew he was supposed to be arguing something, but he was suddenly much more interested in his senpai’s sweet, caring smile.

Belatedly, he realized his face was so hot he was probably bright red, and looked down at his arms, folded over the table. For some reason, he was really enjoying this time alone with Fuji. He felt a brief twinge of jealousy, but then, thinking of Tezuka, it shifted into a stronger mutation of the original feeling. When was he going to stop thinking like this?

“Senpai…”

“Mmm?”

“I’ve had a really good time today.”

“Aa. Me, too,” Fuji agreed.

And then things went back to normal, the two of them chatting about Seigaku’s wins and losses over the previous years.


	10. Chapter 10

“Hey, Echizen!” called a voice the boy recognized.

Momoshiro came running towards him. “Fancy seeing you here.”

Ryouma smirked, tipping his cap to his friend. He was training with a ball machine in a private cage. Momo had probably asked the front desk which one he’d signed out. 

“What’s up?” he asked, jogging over to the machine reluctantly to stop it before the next wave was released.

“Well, we’ll be at training camp this week, so I was thinking maybe you and I should stop by Taka’s place for some sushi,” Momo suggested cheerfully.

“Do you ever think of anything besides food?” Ryouma goaded, already grabbing his things as he suddenly realized how hungry he was.

His stomach chose that moment to emit a loud rumble.

“Do you?” Momo chuckled in return.

Grinning, the two of them made their way out to Momo’s bike, and then headed over to Kawamura Sushi. 

*

Despite the fact that it was a hot day, Inui held his lover in his arms, none-the-less. They were upstairs in Taka’s room, the door open so they could keep an ear out for any customers. Meanwhile, the sushi chef’s father was taking a day off and had gone fishing.

They were discussing assignments due the next day because of the up-coming Regular’s Training Camp. Unlike some couples (read: every other pair of regulars), their relationship was very easygoing and relaxed. They didn’t spend every moment they could making out. They liked to just take things slowly.

As a result, they were very comfortable and content with each other, something which was new to Inui. His calculations and general observation hinted that Takashi was enjoying a similar new experience in being so close to someone.

Previously, he and Fuji had been good friends, but he’d mentioned that the tensai always seemed a little further away than most people. While Fuji was a caring friend, there was just something distant about him.

So, on days where they could be alone together and enjoy each other’s company, Inui and Takashi tended to sit around and talk a lot, occasionally sharing a seemingly spontaneous kiss or two.

In the midst of one such kiss, the bell tinkled downstairs, alerting them to the entrance of a customer.

*

“Ara? Taka-sa~n! Anyone here?” Momo called out.

“Ah, sorry, Momo, I’m coming!” called the resident chef.

Momoshiro shared a glance with Echizen, shrugged, and took a seat at the bar. He was hankering for some good, hopefully discounted sushi. Of course, that wasn’t his only reason for seeking Echizen out, but that could wait till they filled up their bellies.

Kawamura rushed down the stairs, blushing slightly and rubbing the back of his head. “Sorry, I was, uh…”

“Inui-senpai is upstairs?” Echizen asked out of the blue.

Momo glanced at him in confusion. “Inui? Why would he be here?”

Kawamura’s blush deepened, and he registered shock for a moment before mumbling. “Uh, actually, uh, yeah…”

“Good afternoon, Echizen-kun, Momoshiro, kun,” Inui said from the top of the stairs, drawing all of their attention as he descended, adjusting his glasses. “We were just discussing assignments due for tomorrow. Tell me, Echizen, my previous data would suggest that your work is not yet complete. Is that still the case?”

Echizen shook his head. “I finished everything last night.”

“Ah, I must make a note of that. And you, Momoshiro?” Inui asked, taking a seat beside the small pro. 

“I don’t have any!” Momo announced happily.

Echizen frowned. “That’s not true. Aren’t you and Kaidoh in the same class? He asked me for some help with an English speech.”

“Speech? In English?” Momo blinked. He didn’t remember that at all… Could it be that he missed the task sheet, having fallen asleep some day? “We don’t have an… Damn viper! I’m gonna kill him!”

Suddenly, Momo remembered that Kaidoh had seemed a little too smug all week, and now the pieces fit. What kind of stupid teachers assigned speeches during the second week of class? Or was it the Friday of the first week…? Damn! That was going to take all night!

Sighing, Momo sagged onto the bar, feeling depressed. He was saved by his former and very much re-affirmed best friend.

“I’ll help you, senpai,” Echizen muttered, adding cautiously, “But you have to do the actual work yourself.”

“Thank you!” Momo cried, hugging Echizen.

Laughing, Kawamura asked for their orders.

*

Later, Momo sat at Echizen’s desk, squishing his nose with the rubber end of a pencil as he thought. Why was English so hard? Echizen said he’d help, but he wasn’t being very forthcoming at all.

Momo’s brain needed a break. 

He sighed extravagantly, and swiveled around to face Echizen. He had just the distraction for the job! Although, he was a little reluctant to bring it up after the good afternoon they’d spent eating and chatting with their friends.

“Hey, Echizen?”

“Mmm?” Echizen looked up from the cat he was stroking adoringly. “Question?”

“Yeah, but not about English. Actually, I wanted to ask something else—as your best friend and wise senpai.”

Echizen snorted, most probably at the ‘wise’ comment. “You’re just procrastinating.”

“Maybe, but this is important, too.” Momo took a deep breath, his manner turning serious. “Aw, man. I don’t know how to say this… Look, Echizen, is there anything you want to talk about? Romantically, I mean…”

“Momo, you’re the last person I’d want to have a romantic conversation with,” Echizen joked, a little stiffly.

“You know what I meant,” Momo sighed.

Echizen stared at him a moment, then shrugged, looking back down at his purring cat to avoid eye contact. “There’s not really anything to talk about, is there? I mean, you already know who I like, but I don’t really have any options in any case…”

“Is that really true?” Momo asked. “Didn’t you spend the day with Fuji-senpai yesterday?”

Echizen shrugged. “I don’t know,” he said quietly. “Fuji asked me to play some more, but we ended up talking all day. I had a good time, and I guess he did, too, but there’s no point in reading into it. He is with Tezuka after all.”

Momo nodded, more to himself than to Echizen. “And… Forgive me for asking this, but what about Kikumaru-senpai?” Echizen’s head whipped up, and Momo knew he’d struck a nerve. “So there is something going on there?” he asked. He’d been hoping he was imagining things, but apparently not.

Echizen looked away. “Like I said… I don’t know. I… I kind of have this crush on Kikumaru-senpai, but it’s nothing in comparison to…” To the way I feel about Fuji and Tezuka. “I’d say it didn’t matter, either, but…”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed it, too. Kikumaru-senpai and Oishi-senpai seem really solid on the outside, but I think he kind of has feelings for you, too,” Momo admitted reluctantly.

“Momo,” Echizen muttered. He looked up slowly, his eyes seeming a little sadder and older than Momo remembered. “I don’t want to cause problems. Maybe I should go. I’m just getting in the way here-”

“Don’t think that, Echizen,” Momo told him seriously. “We all missed you like crazy. “I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say we’d rather have you here causing problems like a good little brat than out of our lives again.”

Echizen smiled a little. “Thanks.”

“As for Kikumaru-senpai… and Fuji and Tezuka, too, I’d like to say you should just keep your nose out of it, but I just can’t. I want you to be happy. You deserve it, and either way someone’s gonna get burned.” Momo wasn’t looking at the boy anymore. He could hardly believe he was saying this. “I don’t think it should be you.”

Unexpectedly, Echizen grinned. “I don’t want it to be me, either,” he joked. Then, the grin slipped, replaced by a slightly helpless smile. “But I don’t want to see anyone else hurt, either. There’s not much I can do but take things one day at a time and hope nothing blows up in anyone’s face.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Momo agreed, wishing he could do more for his friend. To save the moment, he stretched and then switched into work mode. “Okay, so how do you say ‘Kaidoh’s a stupid asshole’ in English?”

Echizen stared him down blandly. “You are not putting that in your speech.”


	11. Chapter 11

Tezuka stood at the front of the bus, surveying his team. Despite Momo’s melodramatic comedy routine of clinging to a nearby lamp post while Kaidoh tried to drag him onto the bus—he claimed the last camp had scarred him deeply—everyone seemed to be excited and having a good time. 

The familiar first-year trio were midway up the bus, Horio across from Katsuo and Kachiro—who seemed to have gotten rather closer than what Tezuka remembered.

Meanwhile, Oishi and Kikumaru sat just before the back seat, the latter kneeling on his seat and hanging over the headrest while the former sat twisted to stay in the conversation. Kaidoh sat in front of the golden pair, Momoshiro next to him, and behind them all on the back seat was Echizen. Beside Echizen sat Fuji, and then Inui. Everyone was laughing and joking about previous training camp experiences. 

Tezuka turned to the driver and nodded. Then, he made his way up to the back of the bus.

He sat on the seat opposite Oishi and Kikumaru, inwardly twitching at the fact that he couldn’t sit beside Fuji. Really, if Inui sat where he was now, he could sit between Fuji and Echizen, and…

Sighing, he cut off that train of thought.

Instantly, he felt sharp eyes on his back, and almost had to physically restrain himself from turning around. The bus rumbled into action.

*

Fuji heard Tezuka’s sigh, thrilled that his ploy had worked. Subtle manipulation had the seating patterns exactly how he wanted them. As they began to move, he leaned forward.

“Something wrong, Tezuka?” he asked quietly. 

“Nothing,” Tezuka answered instantly. His shoulders were stiff under Fuji’s arms.

“If you say so.”

Fuji let it go with an ease that he knew would irritate Tezuka to no end, then turned and joined in the conversation between Momo and Kikumaru, and occasionally, Echizen. Barely, he heard the scraping of a pencil and knew that Inui was notating that exchange for later dissection. 

*

Their ‘camp’ consisted of a slightly rundown old hotel, but pristinely kept tennis courts. When they arrived, the regular regulars were told to split into two groups of four for sleeping arrangements. 

“O’chibi-chan’s in my room!” Kikumaru-senpai cried almost instantly, jumping on Ryouma a second later.

Well, that meant that Oishi would be, too, so…

“In that case, I’ll join you,” Fuji said serenely, and everyone’s eyes turned towards him. 

After all, if both Kikumaru and Fuji shared a room with Ryouma, then either Oishi or Tezuka would be separated from their lover. 

“Count me in!” Momo chimed in, causing Ryouma to stare at him in shock. “What?”

“But, Momoshiro… Don’t you want to room with Kaidoh?” Fuji asked, echoing everyone’s thoughts and stirring the pot some more while he was at it.

“Ch… With that stupid viper? Are you kidding?” Momo seemed honestly confused by everyone’s surprised expressions. “Viper, tell ‘em. We’d tear each other apart after one night.”

Kaidoh hissed, nodding in agreement. “Who’d want to share a room with you?”

Suddenly, Kikumaru whined, having realized what this meant. “But, then, what about Oishi?”

“Ah, that’s okay. I don’t mind rooming with Inui, Kaidoh, and Tezuka… It’s probably better in the long run, anyway,” Oishi offered.

Everyone understood what he was hinting at, but Ryouma wasn’t so sure. Separating Kikumaru and Oishi, and Tezuka and Fuji, was exactly what he was trying to avoid.

“Perfect, then it’s settled,” Fuji said, before anyone could disagree. 

Kikumaru then dragged Ryouma up the stairs, Fuji and Momo close behind. The other four trailed along after them.

Ryouma tried to console himself. After all, it was just sleeping arrangements. It wasn’t like they’d be spending much time in the separate rooms, and nothing could happen with the four of them all together, right? 

At least he had Momo for security and support.

*

Tezuka was practically seething inside. Fuji had been distancing himself all day. The bus, sleeping arrangements, warm-ups, seating at the dinner table…

The captain honestly had no idea what he’d done. What was so wrong that Fuji was making every effort to push him further and further away? …And creeping closer to Echizen with every step.

That was the most baffling part. He could understand Fuji pushing him away, but wasn’t it Fuji who was jealous of Tezuka’s feelings for Echizen? Wasn’t the tensai angry at him for that? If so, then why send such a clear message that he would rather be around Echizen?

It made no sense, and every time Tezuka tried to think about it, he came closer to losing control of his growing anger and jealousy. Could it be that Fuji was trying to make Tezuka experience what the tensai felt? But Tezuka had barely talked to Echizen outside of tennis, all for Fuji’s sake. He wanted to talk to Echizen. He wanted to hear about the tour and the past two years of Echizen’s life, but he stayed away. He killed his curiosity. For Fuji.

*

Fuji should have felt satisfied. He’d guessed right. Even better, he was winning. And yet, he just felt bitter and empty towards Tezuka.

He could see how badly his actions were affecting the captain, and that bothered him deeply. It bothered him because through all of this, he didn’t know anything! He didn’t know if Tezuka was reacting because of him, or because of Echizen, and he wanted to know, damn it! It was important. He had to know who mattered more.

As the team got ready for bed, Fuji decided to take a walk. It was about time to give Tezuka a chance to confront him.

* 

Kikumaru watched Fujiko slip off, figuring he was going to talk to Tezuka in private. He popped into the room next door, noticing that Tezuka was gone as well, and said goodnight to Oishi with a brief kiss on the lips. Then, he went to brush his teeth.

He was excited and nervous for some reason. The thought of sleeping near Echizen with Oishi just in the other room… it somehow brought back all of the questions and the tension. He suddenly felt stronger about O’chibi than he had before Oishi had risked the supposed Inui juice for him. 

He knew he was treading on thin ice, but he couldn’t stop himself. 

When he got back, Momo was gone, too, probably off somewhere with Kaidoh, leaving Kikumaru alone with Echizen.

“O’chibi-chan!” he cried. “Isn’t this exciting? We had an easy day today, but coach arrives tomorrow and then we’ll be working really hard.”

*

Momo ruffled his hair and said something about going to set that viper in his place, leaving Ryouma alone. Sighing, the boy set up his sleeping mat.

Before leaving, Momo had put his against the wall, and Fuji’s was beside the opposite wall. There was just enough room for Kikumaru and Ryouma between them, but which place should Ryouma take?

Acting before he could allow himself to think too much, he rolled his matt out beside Fuji’s, leaving room for Kikumaru-senpai on the other side. Somehow, he didn’t think Momo would mind too much.

Just as he set his pillow by the wall, Kikumaru returned, looking around at the otherwise empty room before he grinned, showing off his newly brushed teeth.

“O’chibi-chan!” he cried, the familiar nickname making Ryouma feel oddly happy rather than annoyed, as it used to. “Isn’t this exciting? We had an easy day today, but coach arrives tomorrow and then we’ll be working really hard.” He set up next to Ryouma. “I don’t know if I can sleep. I’m too awake. I love these camps.”

Ryouma found himself smiling at his senpai’s cheerful monologue. He sat down on his mat and looked up at Kikumaru who stretched out before flopping down, himself. 

“Senpai, how do you have so much energy all the time?” Ryouma asked, punctuating the question with a yawn.

“My secret weapon,” Kikumaru whispered conspiratorially with a wink. “Have to use the right toothpaste.” He grinned. “I just got a new one, wanna smell?”

Before Ryouma could decline, Kikumaru leaned in and breathed out a sweet puff of air that filled Ryouma with a strange, heady feeling. Kikumaru’s toothpaste really did smell good. He bet it would taste good, too…

Seconds had passed, and Kikumaru’s mouth was still millimeters away, but now only slightly hanging open, just a touch of that sweet scent escaping with each breath. Yet, Ryouma couldn’t seem to make himself move away. His eyes were focused on Kikumaru’s lips.

He wanted so badly to ask how the toothpaste tasted. He wanted so badly to just find out for himself. But he couldn’t. He shouldn’t…

“O’chibi… Do you brush your teeth before bed?” Kikumaru asked.

His hands were on Ryouma’s arms, gently pushing him down, onto the mat. Ryouma shook his head, not resisting in the least, his eyes sliding up to a very dark blue gaze. 

“Well, you should,” Kikumaru whispered.

Obviously, he figured that the least he could do was freshen Ryouma’s breath up with whatever residual paste was left in his mouth, because a moment later, his lips were on Ryouma’s, his tasty, clean tongue slipping into the boy’s mouth. He tasted so good…

“There,” Kikumaru whispered as the brief kiss ended a little reluctantly. “Now, at least you’ll have a nice taste in the morning.”

Ryouma couldn’t think quite clearly enough to understand that through the fog, but he did know one thing. Only Kikumaru-senpai could get away with passing a kiss off as a substitute for brushing teeth.

But he wasn’t really getting away with it, was he? Both of them were breathing a little too hard, their pupils were dilated just a little too much, and Ryouma knew that at least his boxers were feeling a little bit tighter.

“Thanks, senpai,” Ryouma muttered, feeling stupid for doing so, and furiously fighting the blush that heated his cheeks.

“No problem,” Kikumaru answered, though he didn’t sound nearly as sure or cheerful as usual.

There was a tense moment, where Ryouma almost opened his mouth to say something, anything. He wanted to say that they should just forget about it and pretend it never happened, so Oishi-senpai wouldn’t find out and get hurt. That was what he wanted to say, but he knew deep down that it wasn’t what he would have said. What he would have said would have been something he couldn’t take back so easily. What he would have said would have condemned them both to a lot of trouble.

Thankfully, or maybe not, what he would have said was obsolete as he was saved by Momo’s return.

“Goodnight, Kikumaru-senpai. Goodnight, Echizen. The sooner I sleep, the sooner I get to eat breakfast,” he announced as he made his way over to his corner bed.

“Night, Momo,” Ryouma replied, looking away from Kikumaru and trying to calm his heart rate as he rolled over onto his side. “Night Kikumaru-senpai.”

“Goodnight, Momo, O’chibi,” Kikumaru said to them both. Rustling sounds behind Ryouma indicated that the acrobat had crawled under his own sleeping bag. “I wonder where Fujiko’s gone?” Kikumaru muttered after a short, tense silence.

Ryouma was already drifting off to sleep. He wasn’t sure whether he answered aloud, or not, but at least the thought that went through his mind, was: “He’s probably keeping Tezuka awake.”

*

Tezuka grabbed Fuji’s arm, stopping him as he stepped off the front porch. “What’s this about?” he snapped. “Are you trying to make me jealous?”

“I don’t really have to ‘try’ at all, do I?” Fuji spat in reply, jerking his arm out of Tezuka’s grasp. “Maybe I just wanted to know if I could do it.” 

“Why must you go looking for trouble?” Tezuka growled.

“And why-” Fuji whipped around and began to walk away, “-Must you respond to it?” he shot over his shoulder. He didn’t sign up for this aggression, and Tezuka needed to learn it wouldn’t fly.

“Fuji, what have I done to deserve this?” Tezuka argued, chasing after him. “I don’t understand. What more can I do to prove that I love you?”

Surprisingly, probably to the tensai as much as to Tezuka, Fuji sobbed out of nowhere, tears burning his eyes and eventually sliding down his cheeks. “I don’t know!” he cried. “I don’t know what to think, anymore!”

“Fuji, stop!” Tezuka grabbed at him once more, before he could disappear into the approaching tree-line. “What’s wrong? What’s going on?”

Fuji wouldn’t look at him. “I thought I was okay with it. I thought I could live with your feelings for him.” He hung his head, his arm limp in Tezuka’s hand. “It’s harder than I thought. He admires you so much, and… and I thought… I thought he was in love with you, too.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Tezuka said quietly, even as his heart leapt.

“Is it?” Fuji asked, spinning back, his fierce eyes piercing Tezuka. “I’m still not sure. There are moments when it seems I was right, but then… then there are other moments, when I think maybe… maybe it’s me he likes. Maybe I’m the one he’s in love with.”

Tezuka let go. That was exactly what had been bugging him all day. Fuji and Echizen looked very good together. That, at least, had been made clear. Echizen seemed more comfortable around Fuji than most people. And Fuji… Fuji seemed genuinely happy around Echizen.

“And if he is?” Tezuka asked, a little more gruffly than he would have liked. “In love with you?” he clarified.

Fuji stared at him, then turned and began to walk away again.

“Fuji,” Tezuka barked. “How do you feel?”

“I don’t know,” Fuji replied quietly, stopping in his tracks. “I’m confused. Just like you are.”

“I’m not confused,” Tezuka argued. At least, he wasn’t confused about his feelings. He was, however, confused by Fuji’s. “I know how I feel.”

“Of course you do,” Fuji answered coldly. 

“Fuji, I love him. I can’t change that.” Tezuka braced for another scathing reply but Fuji said nothing. The captain softened, feeling helpless as he moved forward, pulling Fuji into his arms and holding the tensai from behind. “I can’t change the fact that I love you, either. So that leaves me in an awkward position.” Another sob rippled through Fuji, and Tezuka softly kissed his temple. “I don’t want to lose you. I’ve already made it clear that I won’t pursue him… I’m happy with you, and that’s enough. Why are you making this so hard?”

“Tezuka…” Fuji reached up, fumbling blindly until his fingers touched Tezuka’s jaw. His hand slid up to cup Tezuka’s cheek. “I love you so much,” he breathed. “But right now… I don’t know what to think…”

He gently strained against Tezuka’s hold, and the captain let him go. Wiping at his tears, Fuji turned to face Tezuka.

He stared into Tezuka’s eyes for a moment that seemed like an eternity, and then brushed past, back to the hotel, leaving the captain alone in the cool night air. It felt as if he’d just been ruthlessly shoved in front of a car by his own mother.

Tezuka didn’t know whether Fuji was breaking up with him; saying he also loved Echizen; saying he was jealous, hurt, and angry; or just losing his mind in a spectacular, tensai way. Consequently, he felt utterly lost and awfully lonely, himself.


	12. Chapter 12

Fuji’s plan had been to make Tezuka jealous. He was going to use the feelings Echizen had shown for him to hurt Tezuka like he was hurting deep down. 

However, what he hadn’t considered was how much it hurt himself, too. The idea was that Tezuka would be jealous because Echizen wanted Fuji. That in itself was a double bladed sword simply because Tezuka had reacted exactly as Fuji hoped he would.

On top of that, the time Fuji had spent with Echizen on Saturday, and the extra attention he’d paid to the boy during the day, had caused some confusion within the tensai. He’d meant to encourage Echizen into really falling for him, but he had a feeling that he had enjoyed their time together as much, if not more, than the pro-turned-high-school-student.

The result left a very confused, angry, hurt, and frustrated tensai stuck with even more problems than he had had to begin with. In short, Fuji was not happy.

He snuck back into their room, instantly aware that Echizen and Momoshiro were deeply asleep while Kikumaru stayed wide awake. This wasn’t due to any secret tensai abilities, but rather because the two aforementioned boys were snoring loudly enough to tempt an earthquake, and who could possibly sleep through that?

“Fujiko?” Kikumaru whispered. 

“Mhmm,” Fuji agreed, slipping his shirt off.

Kikumaru sighed. Maybe it wasn’t just the snoring keeping him awake… 

“Is something wrong, Eiji?” Fuji asked with a touch of concern as he stepped out of his pants and fumbled in his bag for his pajama bottoms. 

“Mm mm,” Kikumaru answered in the negative, flopping back down onto his pillow. “Just checking,” he clarified.

Fuji suddenly doubted that nothing was up, but this wasn’t the time for a heart to heart with Echizen and Momo snoring blithely nearby. If Kikumaru needed to talk, then Fuji would find a chance tomorrow. 

“Goodnight,” Fuji whispered, settling down with his back to the wall.

As his eyes slowly adjusted to the light, he stared at the silhouette of Echizen, wondering what he was going to do. He loved Tezuka, but maybe that just wasn’t enough.

*

Every swing of his racket tired him more and more. The ball was getting heavier. It was so hard to push it back across the court every time, and unless he did something soon, he would lose to his opponent. 

The rally just seemed to go on and on, exhausting Echizen more and more, until he almost gave up. Tezuka was pushing him too hard. 

But he had to prove that he could withstand anything, and he held firm. Drive B. Drive B was the answer. He slid and jumped, pounding the ball back at his opponent, but Kikumaru was already at the net, and easily countered the attack with a strength that he shouldn’t possess. 

Ryouma watched the ball fly past him, then turned to look back at Fuji across the net, who was smiling at him sweetly.

Wait, hadn’t he been playing Tezuka? No, Tezuka was behind him.

“Echizen, become Seigaku’s pillar of support. We need you… I need you.” 

Ryouma turned, and suddenly couldn’t care less about the game. Tezuka’s arms wound around his waist, and he felt safe and comfortable. Those sexy, soft-looking lips descended toward his own…

But somehow, they never made it. Ryouma wasn’t sure what had happened, but time just seemed to shift and change, and instead of kissing him, Tezuka was scolding him.

“There’s no need to be so hard on him, Tezuka. He’s come a long way.” 

Ryouma turned to see Fuji approaching. The tensai pulled Ryouma into his arms from behind, while Ryouma turned back to look at Tezuka. But Tezuka was gone.

“Don’t worry, Yoma-chan, I’ll take care of you,” Fuji whispered into his ear, the odd nickname causing Ryouma to smile even as shivers trickled down his spine at the sound of Fuji’s voice.

He didn’t mind so much that Tezuka had not kissed him, anymore. Now all he wanted was to kiss Fuji. Just like he’d kissed Kikumaru earlier...

When had that happened? No, he’d only played Kikumaru, but Fuji was going to kiss him, he was sure. He turned, trying to reach for Fuji’s lips but the tensai evaded him by speaking.

“We’re all alone, Yoma-chan, so why don’t you stop thinking about Tezuka, hmm?” Fuji’s lips brushed over his cheek but Ryouma wanted to kiss them, not be pecked.

“I wasn’t thinking about Tezuka. I was thinking about Kikumaru, but it’s not like that. I just wanted you to kiss me,” Ryouma argued desperately before Fuji could get mad.

“Oh, well, if that’s all… Yoma-chan…” Fuji’s lips were so close. He could feel the tensai’s breath… 

“-youma… Ryouma!”

Ryouma sat up, almost cracking skulls with Fuji, who jerked out of the way just in time. He was sweaty and his heart was racing at a million miles an hour. And damned if he wasn’t hard as a rock.

He looked at Fuji, the dream slipping from his mind as he regained touch with reality. 

“Senpai?” he whispered.

“Shh, you were having a nightmare,” Fuji told him, brushing his hair back from his forehead. “You’re very warm. Do you feel okay?”

Ryouma had not had a nightmare, and no, he didn’t feel okay, but he certainly wasn’t sick. He didn’t remember the dream now but he knew that Fuji had featured heavily in it. He also felt sure that Tezuka was there, too, and probably Kikumaru as well. Yes, he was certain Kikumaru was in it at some point… Just what had he been dreaming?

As he tried to remember, Fuji’s hand pressed against his forehead and he had to let the dream slip away to deal with the waking world.

“I’m not sick,” Ryouma whispered. “It was just… just a really bad dream, that’s all.”

Fuji stared into his eyes and Ryouma had a terrible feeling that he’d given himself away. Luckily, even if Fuji could make out his face, it was too dark to distinguish the blush staining his cheeks. At least, so he hoped.

*

Fuji had been woken by Echizen’s moans and acted reflexively, waking the boy up from what he’d presumed was a nightmare. Now, he wasn’t so sure. 

Just what had the boy been dreaming about? 

A little voice prompted that maybe it had been him. Maybe Echizen was having a wet dream about him, and for some reason that made his heart beat a little faster.

He wanted very much to lean over and kiss Echizen, and even more to slip his hand beneath that sleeping bag and find out just how much the ‘nightmare’ had affected him. He refrained.

What really stopped him was the thought that Echizen could easily have been dreaming about Tezuka. That reminded Fuji of his confrontation with his lover earlier that night, and any illusion of desire melted away, replaced by weariness.

He smiled, brushed Echizen’s cheek with his fingers, and said goodnight. Echizen, in turn, mumbled a reply and lay down, curling his knees in—probably willing away his erection. 

*

In the morning, Ryouma barely remembered waking up in the night and found it hard to distinguish between dream and reality. He thought that the vivid impression of Fuji touching his cheek had been real but he couldn’t be sure as he also remembered Fuji leaning in to kiss him. That couldn’t have been real.

Besides, he’d had other dreams after getting back to sleep. Dreams involving Kikumaru and Oishi-senpai, and he wished he could remember them.

He wasn’t quite able to pretend Kikumaru’s kiss had been a dream. He spent most of the morning worrying about it but after breakfast, there was no time to worry about anything but staying alive.

Ryuzaki-sensei showed up, saying that their high school coach had called in ill, and so their retired middle-school coach would be taking over the training camp for the week. That left all the regulars in a state of panic.

Ryuzaki-sensei had been hard enough on them in middle school. What was she going to be like now that they’d gotten stronger and older?

Of course, Ryouma knew. He knew what she was like. She’d coached his dad, and his dad had coached him on tour.

A scant five minutes after warming up, lunch time was the team’s greatest hope, and that seemed years away…

*

Tezuka thought best while training and playing tennis. He absorbed the hellish practice of the morning and retreated into his mind. There, he came to a solution.

He knew what he had to do.

At this point, it looked like he was going to lose Fuji no matter what. Staying away from Echizen had done no good for anyone. Fuji was hurt by Tezuka’s unintentional feelings, no matter how it had seemed at first. He couldn’t really blame the tensai but he wished Fuji would see that he had never intended to be intimate with anyone else, not even Echizen.

However, at this point, Tezuka had nothing to lose. He decided that it was time to talk to Echizen. It was time to confess his feelings and explain his situation with Fuji in hopes that the boy would understand and help him come to a more informed decision. 

He would go insane if he held it in any longer. He needed to get it off his chest. He needed to know how Echizen felt. He just needed for everything—every little thing—to be clear.

Just before lunch, he slipped away to the kitchen with Ryuzaki-sensei’s permission, and grabbed enough lunch for both himself and the doubtlessly ravenous Echizen. Then, he grabbed the boy as the rest stumbled inside for their break. 

“Captain?” Echizen asked, looking up at him in confusion.

“I’d like to talk with you,” Tezuka revealed. “Don’t worry, I have lunch for you,” he added, smiling slightly as he saw the brief panic in Echizen’s eyes.

“Okay,” Echizen agreed, almost too easily at the mention of food.

He was obviously curious, too, but it wasn’t his style to dig around, and Tezuka was thankful for that. The captain was actually quite nervous.

Leading Echizen away from the courts and their lodgings, he spotted a little clearing at the side the path. “This will do,” he said.

They sat on the gravel-strewn grass, Tezuka pulling the food out of his backpack and handing over Echizen’s share.

“What do you want to talk about?” Echizen finally gave in and asked, after having walked so far in silence.

“Eat first,” Tezuka offered. “When I’m finished, I’ll talk.”

As he ate, he thought about what he was going to say, but he knew he would just end up speaking his mind, anyway. He was in that odd sort of mood, and, besides, the subject was too important to script.

Throwing his banana skin in a plastic bag and taking a swig of water, Tezuka prepared himself to begin. Echizen was still eating, though a little more delicately than he usually would, the captain noted.

“You know that Fuji and I are together,” he began.

Echizen nodded, glancing up as he took a bite out of his sandwich.

“Frankly, I don’t know how much longer we will be. Something’s come up lately that has been slowly tearing us apart, and neither of us really knows what to do,” Tezuka admitted, staring into the forest rather than looking at Echizen. “You see, for a long time, I’ve had feelings for someone else. I don’t know how long Fuji was aware of it, but he brought it up recently, because…” Now Tezuka did glance at the boy. “Because you came back.” He took a deep breath. “I care about Fuji. I don’t want to hurt him. But I can’t help the way I feel about you, Echizen, so all I could do until now was to keep away from you.” Echizen was staring back at him with an unreadable expression, all thoughts of hunger apparently discarded. “Now, I realize that it made no difference. Fuji is jealous and he will be no matter what I do, so I wanted to take this opportunity to talk to you.”

“Why now?” Echizen asked, almost nonchalantly.

“Because Fuji and I had an argument last night that has left me with very little in the way of options. I’m confused, and tired of running about him in circles. You deserve to know what’s going on now that he’s dragged you into it.” Echizen looked away at that, and Tezuka reached out to touch the boy’s shoulder, his voice softening. “He succeeded in what he was trying to do. I’m jealous, of you and of him. So I give up trying to make everything seem okay… If you want, I’ll leave you alone and do my best to get Fuji to keep you out of this. Otherwise, I need to know how you feel, Ryouma.”

*

Ryouma didn’t know what to think. All he wanted was for Tezuka or Fuji to want him, and now Tezuka suddenly claimed to have feelings for him. He felt like he couldn’t move, couldn’t breath without the world imploding.

And yet, he didn’t feel very happy about it. He’d begun to get used to the idea of Fuji and Tezuka together, and he wanted them to be happy. Now, they were on the verge of breaking up and it was his fault.

If he said he was in love with both Tezuka and Fuji… what then? If he admit to loving one, but not the other, what then? And if he said nothing? What then?

“Do you think you two can work things out?” he asked quietly.

“I don’t know,” Tezuka replied. “I don’t think Fuji is willing to just let this go.”

Ryouma didn’t think so, either. So, Fuji had been using him to make Tezuka jealous. After the rapport of the last couple of days, he’d hoped his senpai might have for him some of those feelings that seemed to be going around, but all he was to Fuji was a tool to make Tezuka jealous.

Feeling rather depressed, Ryouma picked at the grass. He sighed. Tezuka was waiting patiently for his answer, but he didn’t know what to say.

“Do you really love him?” he asked. “More than anything else in the world?” It was a childish way to phrase the question, but he needed to gauge the depth of Fuji and Tezuka’s relationship.

“I love him. Very deeply,” Tezuka replied. “But not to the exclusion of all else—not to the exclusion of you,” he added breathily.

Ryouma slowly turned to look at him, feeling as though he was going to cry for some stupid reason.

He knew now, without a doubt, that he could have Tezuka. If he just said the word, Tezuka would be his… but where would that leave Fuji? He didn’t want to hurt either one of them.

*

Tezuka knew Echizen was thinking carefully about what to say, and the situation was so fragile that Tezuka judged it best to give him time. He even answered whatever questions Echizen asked of him, honestly and without hesitation. It was terrifying to admit his deepest feelings just like that, but there was nothing else he could do.

When he confessed his weakness and the boy looked at him as if his world was on the verge of shattering, Tezuka couldn’t stop himself. He reached out and gently touched Echizen’s cheek.

Then, he leaned in and softly kissed those sweet, insolent lips, savoring the moment as his heart beat drastically in his chest. He felt hot and cold all at once, his glasses tipped awkwardly, and he was aware of every breath of his and Echizen’s, of every touch of the boy’s lips, of the feel of soft skin under his racket-calloused fingers…

Reluctantly, he pulled back, afraid to open his eyes and end the moment—but all good things must come to an end. Thus, he slowly opened his eyes to see tears slip from Echizen’s and fall down his cheeks.

Echizen was certainly in love with someone to a very deep extent, but Tezuka had no idea whether it was him or Fuji, and he desperately wanted to know. It would be bitterly ironic if Echizen truly was in love with Fuji. Tezuka clamped down on that thought before his heart could clench painfully and cause him to start spouting his own tears like a lovesick fool.

“Ryouma,” he whispered, unable to take the charged silence any longer.

“I can’t answer,” Echizen said at last, his eyes still closed. “I need some time. Please, give me a chance to think,” he begged, not sounding like his regular, confident self at all.

*

The one thing that kept popping to the fore in Ryouma’s wild thoughts, again and again, was that he didn’t want to destroy Tezuka and Fuji’s relationship. He shouldn’t get involved. He should leave them be.

And so, as they walked back in silence, he began to slow, watching the tree-line approach. He knew he had to say something before they reached open air.

“Tezuka,” he said, stopping. He stared straight ahead. “Captain… I…” He took a breath and kept walking, forcing himself to calm down. “I shouldn’t get involved… It would be best if I just stayed out of it.”

“If that’s what you want.”

“I’m still going to think about what I want, but right now, that’s how I feel,” Ryouma said quietly, afraid that Tezuka would hate him for the blatant lie.

“Think on it some more,” Tezuka said quietly, catching up but remaining two steps behind, a respectful distance. “When you’re ready, tell me what it is you want.”

Ryouma nodded and followed the captain back out into the full glory of sunlight. They were just in time to resume the hellish training.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time for that lemon everyone secretly wants and hates to love... No, not that one... THAT one. :p

Everyone else was hanging out somewhere downstairs, probably still in the dining room, but Ryouma had wanted to get away. He quietly made his exit, slipping up to the room he shared with his senpais. There, he sat atop his sleeping bag, staring at the blue material. 

Tezuka had been watching him all afternoon and all evening. That wasn’t surprising after the captain’s confession but it put pressure on Ryouma. He needed to think and he couldn’t do that knowing that Tezuka was observing him. 

To top it off, he’d started getting paranoid about every little thing Fuji said or did, wondering if the tensai somehow knew that Tezuka had confessed love for him that afternoon. It was driving Ryouma crazy.

So he escaped. 

He half expected Fuji to come upstairs and confront him, but after at least half an hour he was still alone and sinking deeper and deeper into thought by the moment. 

He loved Tezuka. He loved Fuji. Tezuka loved him. Fuji, apparently, thought him a great toy. 

So where did that leave him? In the midst of a breakup.

He didn’t want to be responsible, and yet he undeniably was. He wanted his senpais to be happy and stay together, but they couldn’t when he was in the way.

Confused, angry, and tired, Ryouma only noticed Kikumaru’s presence when his chin was tilted up and soft lips pressed against his.

*

Kikumaru stood in the doorway for at least five minutes, wondering if Echizen would notice him if he just stood there long enough—but his patience gave out. Staring at an inactive person for five minutes was just plain boring.

Something was obviously bothering Echizen really badly and Kikumaru had all of two suspicions. Either it was related to what had happened the previous night, or it had something to do with Tezuka and Fuji. Both were highly likely, but the first he could actually do something about.

*

Oishi saw Eiji leave, and Echizen had gone some time ago. He had no doubt that they were alone together now and he had a fair suspicion as to what might be happening.

Why didn’t he put a stop to it?

One learned to deal with loving Eiji. Anything shiny would attract Eiji’s attention; or anything loud, or anything moving… Or not… He would be fascinated driving past a field of sleeping cows.

It was no big surprise that Echizen had captured his attention. After all, the boy was smart, talented, cute, and now famous, and Eiji was probably starting to fall in love…

But in the end, all of that was just superficial. When it came down to it, Eiji would return to Oishi. He always would, and then one day, he’d have seen enough new and exciting things to start seeing what was in front of him without all the distractions.

So Oishi could humor him for now, even if it hurt.

*

Ryouma knew he should resist; he knew that he should push his senpai away—and yet, he didn’t. He didn’t want to. He was running from one problem straight into another and he was fully aware of the decision, but the current problem was easier to deal with. The current guilt was easier to tuck away.

He had all but decided not to get involved with Tezuka and Fuji. Not now. He refused to consciously intrude on their relationship.

But that didn’t save him the loneliness that was slowly eating away at him. This did. Kikumaru’s lips, silently comforting and coaxing… they drove the loneliness away.

So he didn’t consider the fact that he was intruding on another relationship in a far more destructive manner. He didn’t think about it at all. He just let his senpai kiss him, and he kissed back.

It wasn’t like the previous night. There was a lot more to this kiss. 

Ryouma’s heart was beating, and he could feel the flustered shift in Kikumaru’s breath. Then there was the way the acrobat’s tongue was stroking his, and the hands locking fingers with his own.

Suddenly, Kikumaru pulled back, leaving Ryouma dazed and breathless.

“Hoi, Ochibi-chan,” Kikumaru whispered. “Come with me?”

Ryouma’s head acted all of its own accord, dipping in a nod. The next second, he was being dragged behind a very determined Kikumaru, Eiji. 

They ascended two flights to the last floor of the hotel with rooms for hire. There, Kikumaru pulled Ryouma into the unlocked bathroom at the end of the hall.

Finally, Ryouma’s senses began to kick in. Kikumaru had dragged him up two floors to a room where they could privately do anything they liked. As thrilled as he was, he was also hesitant, for good reason.

He pulled his hand free. “Why did you bring me up here, senpai?” Not that he didn’t already know, but if he resisted prematurely he could be accused of jumping to conclusions.

“Because Fujiko and Momo won’t bother us up here,” Kikumaru answered, nudging Ryouma up against the door and reaching around to flip the lock.

Ryouma took a deep breath, unable to deny that he was partially hard from that kiss and Kikumaru’s proximity was only adding to the problem. “And Oishi-senpai, right? He’s not likely to walk in on us up here…”

“No, he’s not,” Kikumaru breathed without hesitation, and Ryouma noted that he looked sad as he said it but wasn’t backing off, regardless. “Ryouma-chan-”

“Don’t,” Ryouma whispered. “I’m confused and tired right now. I don’t know if I can be strong enough for both of us.” Or for all five of them.

He turned and reached for the lock, but Kikumaru’s arms wrapped around him and his senpai’s chin landed on his shoulder. Ryouma froze, and waited.

“I love Oishi,” Kikumaru whispered. “But I can’t get you out of my head. I know how you feel about Fujiko and buchou, and I know how you feel about me, and it makes me so sad to think that you’re all alone while we all have each other. I can’t just let you go on like that because… because you’re special and you deserve to be loved!”

The words stole Ryouma’s breath away. Kikumaru was feeling all of the jealousy and hurt for him. Kikumaru was dwelling on everything he tried to bury and forget. 

“Hoi, O’chibi… Worry about yourself before you go fretting about everyone else’s relationships…”

“If I don’t, who will?” Ryouma asked as he turned back to face his senpai, finding it increasingly harder not to just give in to Kikumaru’s seizing of the moment.

“We’ll worry about ourselves. We’ll take responsibility for our own actions,” Kikumaru breathed, even as his lips descended to Ryouma’s once more.

Maybe he should mention Tezuka's confession. Maybe he should admit to himself and Kikumaru that he desperately wanted to tell the captain that he loved both Tezuka and Fuji.

And just maybe he should shut up and let his hands wander.

*

Kikumaru had made his decision. O'chibi was not going to be alone, anymore—even if it meant sacrificing his and Oishi's relationship in the worst case scenario.

He'd never much been one for self restraint. Oishi knew that. Oishi knew a lot about him, including that he couldn't possibly stay faithful forever... Or for all of high school, for that matter.

Actually, Kikumaru was beginning to wonder if maybe it wasn't Oishi he wanted to spend his life with. He was certainly falling for Echizen.

Before he knew it, they were both naked, Kikumaru grinding against Echizen as he kissed the boy's jaw. He swiped it one last time with his tongue before asking the important question.

"Nya, O’chibi… do you want this? Tell me."

"Yes..." Echizen sighed. 

That was all Kikumaru needed to know.

*

He was throwing away all of his morals, his true feelings, his better judgment... because anything was better than running circles around Tezuka and Fuji in his own mind. Surely anything was better than such painful confusion, even if the problems just got cycled around for later.

Ryouma let go. He kissed Kikumaru deeply as he felt warm fingers close around his erection, stroking gently. 

He gasped, arching his neck involuntarily. “Senpai…” he whispered, reaching to reciprocate, but his hand was intercepted.

In fact, both of his hands were, then pinned at his sides as Kikumaru sank to his knees. Ryouma looked down, his breath catching as he saw how close Kikumaru’s lips were to his length. 

As emotionally mature as Ryouma was, he didn’t have a great deal of sexual experience, despite his father’s highly unsubtle prodding. In fact, this was a first for him. Consequently, he was dripping at the tip and very, very hard.

“Hoi, O’chibi,” Kikumaru breathed, his voice husky. “Do I turn you on this much? …Or were you thinking about someone else?”

Suddenly that bright grin appeared, and Ryouma’s heart jumped a little. That grin was part of the reason he liked Kikumaru so much.

He blushed. “Who else would I be thinking about when you’re looking at me like that?” he retorted, managing to sound annoyed rather than weak-kneed and on the verge of losing his renowned control.

“Good, because now you get a treat.”

“Treat” didn’t exactly cover it as Kikumaru practically deep throated Ryouma in one go, causing the boy’s hips to buck involuntarily as he was instantly drowned in pleasure. The first pure groan tore from Ryouma’s throat as he temporarily lost control of his senses, and he ignored the restraining hands around his wrists, breaking a free to thread his fingers into Kikumaru’s soft, silky hair.

*

If Kikumaru didn’t have his mouth full, he would have smiled. As nice as Oishi’s reactions were, O’chibi took the cake. Just hearing Echizen groan was a huge turn-on all by itself. Knowing that it was him, Kikumaru, who earned that groan and various other reactions, made him want to touch himself very badly.

So he did exactly that. Whilst Echizen had one hand buried in and clinging to the roots of Kikumaru’s hair, the acrobat was still pinning one of Echizen’s wrists to the wall. He slid his free hand down his own belly, moaning softly as he made contact with his own rigid erection. Meanwhile, the vibrations of his moan drew another sexy sound from Echizen.

As he fondled himself, Kikumaru focused on working his lips, throat, and tongue about Echizen’s cock. He knew the boy was close, but he didn’t care about much other than giving Echizen the best, and probably the only blowjob of his life so far.

From the sounds of it, he was succeeding.

*

Ryouma was panting and trembling, and even sweating a little. He was trying to hold out and enjoy the incredible sensation as long as possible but Kikumaru was not making that easy. 

Finally, Ryouma made the mistake of looking down. The image almost killed him. Kikumaru on his knees, his nose buried in Ryouma’s pubic hair with those sexy blue eyes looking up at him… and below that, Kikumaru was stroking himself very slowly and deliberately, his knees spread wide open as he humped his fist ever so slightly.

Within seconds, Ryouma came, half-heartedly crying out a belated warning as he was overcome.

Next thing he knew, Ryouma was lying on the bathroom floor. Kikumaru was half lying on top of him and Ryouma could feel the flutter of a busy hand against his thigh. A moment after he recovered his senses, Kikumaru kissed him deeply, and rather desperately.

Ryouma eagerly took Kikumaru’s length into his hand, starting off very slowly but raising the pace soon enough, as Kikumaru mewled into his mouth. His eyes open, Ryouma observed the expressions flashing across his senpai’s face, the unconscious movements of his body; the heave of his chest as his breath caught and dipped, and whooshed out on a groan…

Oddly touched, Ryouma considered how lucky he was that someone as amazing as Kikumaru—who obviously cared a lot about Oishi—was actually willing to be with him like this. It amazed him that he was lucky enough to be able to so affect such an incredible person. 

So he watched, feeling very happy and wanted—and, of course, turned-on—as his senpai begin to thrust while their lips still locked in a deep, hot kiss. The closer Kikumaru came to release, the further he crawled over Ryouma, until he was on top of the boy, thrusting down into a tight fist, his arms locked about Ryouma’s neck as they kissed without coming up for air—or, rather, without Ryouma being allowed up for air.

Suddenly, Kikumaru froze, breaking the kiss. He was breathing hard, and his whole body was tense with pleasure. Slowly, he opened his eyes and shifted as Ryouma’s hand slowed out of confusion.

Only then, as Kikumaru found and rubbed against his renewed arousal, did Ryouma realize that he was hard again. He groaned as Kikumaru began grinding down into him.

It could have been hours or seconds, but at some point, Kikumaru whispered, “Cum with me,” into his ear, and Ryouma was pushed over the edge again, crying out as his cock twitched and spurted along with Kikumaru’s, both of them grinding until the last of the aftershocks subsided.

“O’chibi…?” Kikumaru whispered as he lay limp on Ryouma’s chest, cuddling cosily and closing his eyes. “Do you understand?”

Ryouma thought about it for a moment, then made a noise of disgust. “As if I would go about telling anyone, anyway.”

For some strange reason, Kikumaru actually garnered the energy to raise himself up and produce a pout. “You mean, if I wasn’t dating Oishi, you wouldn’t wanna show me off?”

Ryouma turned his nose up, though he was sporting a huge smile. “Not even a little bit,” he replied insolently.

“You’re so-” Kikumaru yawned. “-Mean...”

Ryouma crinkled his nose up. “I need a shower,” he complained, thinking about how they were going to sneak back downstairs with any measure of subtlety.


	14. Chapter 14

Momo shifted his thigh, caressing Kaidoh through the thin pajama pants. Meanwhile, his boyfriend kissed him aggressively, pinning him hard against the wall.  
   
They were engaged in a little pre-sleep make-out session around the corner and halfway up the stairs to the next level. It was a little more public than they might have likes but there weren’t many places to hide in the old hotel, so they had to make do. It wasn’t like there was anyone staying upstairs, anyway…  
   
Then again, it did make a touch of sense to Momo’s lust riddled brain when Echizen and Kikumaru-senpai came waltzing down the stairs together. They’d been missing for at least an hour, and he had had a slight suspicion as to where they might be.  
   
He managed to overcome his embarrassment and grin at his good friends whilst Kaidoh blushed brightly and shrunk back against the opposite wall. Echizen just kept on walking, whilst Kikumaru averted his gaze and began whistling in a supposedly innocent manner that didn’t even make sense in the context of a cliché.  
   
Kaidoh muttered something about going to bed and dashed down the corridor ahead of the two, leaving Momo to regain his wits. “Oi! Echizen!” he called. Echizen paused and turned, cocking his head to the side. “Mind if I ask your advice on something?”  
   
*  
   
Shrugging, Ryouma told Kikumaru to go on ahead. “What is it?” he asked, typically blunt.  
   
Momo turned serious. “Let’s go outside and talk,” he suggested.  
   
They ended up on the balcony, Momo hanging over the railing whilst Ryouma leaned his back against it, staring up at what he could see of the stars. “Did you actually have a question?” he prompted.  
   
“Yeah, we look good together, don’t we?” Momo joked.  
   
“I hope you mean you and Kaidoh-senpai,” Ryouma replied.  
   
“You don’t think you and I’d make a stunning couple?” Momo cried as if wounded.  
   
Ryouma snorted. “Kaidoh-senpai is welcome to deal with you,” he retorted.  
   
They both smiled, though Momo wore more of a grin. Ryouma was feeling relaxed for the first time since, probably, the ranking tournament. It was nice to banter with Momo like old times.  
   
Of course, that couldn’t last forever. Times certainly were not old, and there were a lot of changes going on.  
   
“Oi, so what did Tezuka buchou want?” Momo asked, his voice nonchalant but his eyes serious.  
   
Ryouma sighed. “To tell me that he loves me, thinks that Fuji-senpai is toying with me, and that he wanted to know how I feel about them both.”  
   
“And did you tell him?” Momo continued, his brows creased in a frown.  
   
“I said I need time to think,” Ryouma answered, turning to lean over the balcony himself. “He kissed me.”  
   
Momo raised his eyebrows but rather than any kind of weight-bearing statement, he asked, “How was it?”  
   
Staring out at the dark and the bare silhouettes of the surrounding scenery, Ryouma smiled sadly. “It was…”  
   
Momo didn’t press. “And just now? Were you and Kikumaru-senpai…?”  
   
“Do you think Oishi-senpai knows?” Ryouma asked quietly. He was slightly ashamed at his actions when pressed to address them in front of someone on the outside, but at least with Momo he could be open.  
   
“I don’t know,” Momo replied gravely.  
   
“What do you think I should do?” Ryouma asked, seriously requesting his friend’s advice. He was getting tired of being confused.  
   
“Honestly? I think you should tell Tezuka the truth, regardless,” Momo replied, skipping the symptoms and going straight for the cause.  
   
Ryouma made a non-commital sound of agreement. He had no intention of doing any such thing—at least, not until he’d thoroughly thought everything through. Besides, now that he’d taken such a bold step with Kikumaru, he couldn’t afford another layer of confusion.  
   
*  
   
Training camp was fun! Training camp was a great experience! Training camp was… Well, it was miserable when everyone was tired from barely sleeping.  
   
Inui missed Kawamura, Kaidoh was hard all night from his inconclusive encounter with Momo, the latter was too hungry to sleep, and everyone else was troubled to say the least.  
   
No-one—not even Tezuka—was up to Ryuzaki-sensei’s full-steam gusto but on the bright side, they were all too distracted by their own exhaustion to notice anyone else’s. Of course, Ryuzaki-sensei was wide awake and observant, and able to clearly discern the general layout of the various issues. As such, she suddenly called training off for the day and ordered the team to enjoy the mountain location. The conditions were that they had one day only to relax, and when they got back to work, they would be drilled harder than ever before.  
   
Momo and Kaidoh quickly disappeared, soon followed by a lone Inui armed with plastic containers and his trusty notebook. Ryouma expected Oishi to approach Kikumaru but instead, the vice captain and captain ended up wandering off somewhere together. However, before Kikumaru could latch himself onto Ryouma, said boy was whisked off by Fuji. Dejected for a short while, Kikumaru decided to use his lone status to follow Inui and discover once and for all what went into those awful drinks.  
   
*  
   
“It’s funny,” Oishi murmured out of the blue. “I think you’re more jealous than I am.”  
   
“Jealous?” Tezuka asked, though there was scarcely a hint of surprise in his voice.  
   
“You can hardly pretend you didn’t notice…” Oishi replied. “Eiji and Echizen were alone together for an awfully long time last night.”  
   
“So what? We’re alone together now, aren’t we? They are good friends, after all-”  
   
“You don’t have to protect me, Tezuka,” Oishi sighed, flopping down on a conveniently large boulder. “I’ve seen it coming for a while now. I knew Eiji would make a move sooner or later, I just didn’t think Echizen would…”  
   
“It is strange,” Tezuka agreed. “Especially after…”  
   
“After?”  
   
Tezuka sighed. He moved to sit on the smaller boulder by Oishi. “It’s probably my fault. We had a discussion yesterday that may have confused him into doing something stupid. He’s so busy backing away from me that he must have tripped straight into Kikumaru-san’s arms.”  
   
“It’s not easy pretending to be blind, deaf, and completely clueless,” Oishi grumbled. “I wish I could just tell him how much I love him and that I’ll always be here—not that I’m trying to encourage him, but as long as I believe he’ll come back to me… I don’t know. I miss him. I want him back.”  
   
“I know what you mean,” Tezuka replied quietly. “It’s the same with Fuji, although I have likely lost him permanently.”  
   
*  
   
Tezuka had taken Echizen aside; most likely to confess his true feelings, thus breaking his promise to Fuji. He was supposed to stay away—far away—but there he’d gone, disappearing with Echizen. Next thing Fuji knew, Echizen was off somewhere with Kikumaru and he, Fuji, was left behind yet again.  
   
That wouldn’t do at all. Echizen loved him. Tezuka hadn’t gotten the answer he wanted, that much was certain, so Fuji would press his advantage to the fullest. He was going to make Tezuka so jealous it physically hurt. Echizen would be his without the tiniest shred of a doubt.  
   
Seizing the opportunity, Fuji invited Echizen to walk with him, leading the boy to a nice, private location where they wouldn’t be disturbed—at least, not until it was convenient for someone to see them.  
   
First, there was the little problem of Kikumaru to be dealt with…  
   
*  
   
“Echizen.”  
   
“What?” Ryouma mumbled in reply to the whisper, trying to sound irritated but not bothered. It was rather hard with Fuji pinning him to a tree.  
   
“Don’t think I don’t know where you were last night,” Fuji breathed into his ear, the tensai’s knee creeping to where it shouldn’t be.  
   
Ryouma’s mouth went dry—for several reasons. “I don’t know what-”  
   
“Ryouma… You should think before you act. Do you really want to come between Kikumaru and Oishi? They belong together. You know that, don’t you?” Fuji asked quietly, his lips caressing Ryouma’s skin as he spoke.  
   
“I don’t want to come between anyone,” Ryouma argued, though he knew he had done exactly that the previous night. “Fuji-senpai, please st-”  
   
“Forget about Eiji,” Fuji whispered, cupping his cheek and looking directly into his eyes. “Let Oishi have him. You can have me.”  
   
It was… tempting. Sorely tempting. After all, Ryouma’s feelings for Kikumaru didn’t even compare to what he felt for Fuji, but then Tezuka’s words rang in his ears. _He succeeded in what he was trying to do. I’m jealous, of you and of him._  
   
All of the stress, confusion, hurt, and a good dose of anger all crashed down on him at once and he shouted so desperately his voice split. “Stop!”  
   
*  
   
Kikumaru heard Echizen’s cry. He started moving toward the sound, but before he knew it, the boy in question flew straight into his arms and then collapsed to his knees.  
   
Kikumaru knelt before him, holding him in shock, and wondering what had happened.  
   
“O’chibi,” he crooned softly.  
   
It was then that he realized Echizen was crying, his body trembling as one sob and then another shook his body.  
   
“Tell me, if you want to,” Kikumaru whispered.  
   
He knew it must be Fuji. Only Tezuka or Fuji could affect Echizen this drastically and the boy had left with Fuji after all. Whatever it was, it had him really shaken up, and Kikumaru felt a slight premonition of the beginning of the end.  
   
He had actually been considering leaving Oishi for good. He was really thinking about breaking up with Oishi and making things official with Echizen… but that was just a silly fantasy, after all.  
   
O’chibi belonged with someone who could hurt him this much—because that person could also make him boundlessly happy.  
   
“Tezuka loves me, but if I… Fuji would be so hurt. He’s so in love with Tezuka… He doesn’t even see me as anything but a tool!”  
   
“O’chibi…” Kikumaru whispered.  
   
He wished he knew the right words to say, or that he could be enough to make all of the hurt and pain go away, but he wasn’t. Nothing he did or said would make it all better, because it wasn’t him that Echizen needed. Promises and actions were meaningless unless they came from the right person… and Kikumaru wasn’t it. He knew that, but that didn’t stop him from wanting to be.  
   
He looked up, seeing Fuji appear through the trees. They stared silently at each other for a moment, while Kikumaru judged whether he was right to back away or not.  
   
If he didn’t, nothing would ever be resolved. If he wanted Echizen to be happy, then he had to give Fuji a chance to straighten things out.  
   
Placing a gentle kiss on Echizen’s temple, he whispered. “There’s something I need to talk about with Oishi, so you should stay here and hear Fujiko out.”  
   
Echizen looked up at him in shock but Kikumaru quickly turned and walked away before he changed his mind.  
   
*  
   
Shocked, Fuji recoiled.  
   
Had he gone too far? Suddenly, he felt terribly guilty. He’d been seething with nothing but anger and jealousy all morning and he’d barely noticed the terribly inconsiderate way he’d been treating poor Ryouma. Not only was he taking advantage of the boy’s feelings, but his confusion, as well—and his body, too, if all had gone according to plan.  
   
What was wrong with him? Fuji wasn’t such a malicious type of person.  
   
After several long moments of horrified paralyses, Fuji’s feet finally began to move in the direction in which Echizen had run. He had to apologize. He couldn’t leave things as they were. He’d made a big, stupid mistake, and now he had to pay for it or he was going to lose everyone important to him in one shot.  
   
He froze, seeing Echizen in Eiji’s arms. Again, he felt terribly jealous, but this time it wasn’t over Tezuka. He wanted to be—he should be—the one comforting Echizen, not the one chasing after him to apologize. He should be the one whispering into Echizen’s ear and kissing his temple.  
   
Then Eiji got up and walked away, leaving Fuji surprised once again and left frozen once more as Echizen looked around at him, just as shocked. They stared at each other for several seconds before Echizen’s expression changed. Fuji stared at Echizen’s face and the angry tears in the boy’s eyes, and felt utterly ashamed of himself.  
   
“I’m sorry,” he whispered helplessly. “I didn’t mean-”  
   
*  
   
Ryouma shook his head, cutting Fuji off. “You think I don’t know?” he asked quietly. “You’re just using me to get to Tezuka. You don’t care about Kikumaru and Oishi, and you don’t care about me.” He stood, slowly, turning to fully face Fuji.  
   
“That’s not true,” Fuji argued. “Not… not entirely.”  
   
“I can’t take much more of this,” Ryouma hissed. “I came back because I missed everyone. I wanted to see you all again. I wanted to be with my friends, and with Tezuka… and you. I… I just wanted to be with the people I loved, but… everything’s gone wrong. You and Tezuka being together, and being happy… I didn’t want to get in the way, and Kikumaru-senpai… He… he _should_ be with Oishi, but… but I was jealous and lonely, and… I don’t want to hurt anyone! But I don’t want to _be_ hurt, either. I should just leave. I don’t know why I came back. I-”  
   
“Don’t say that!”  
   
*  
   
Without a second thought, Fuji rushed forward and pulled the boy tightly into his arms. Echizen was ranting, almost hysterically. It was highly unusual for the boy to even talk this much let alone about himself or his feelings.  
   
“Please don’t say that,” Fuji whispered. “You deserve to be here. I’m sorry. I’ve really made a fool of myself.” Echizen struggled, shaking his head and trying to argue but Fuji finally understood just how disgustingly he’d been acting. “Tezuka loves you. He always has. I just… I couldn’t handle that. I was jealous and when I realized how you felt about me… You’re right. I wanted to use that to hurt him, out of spite. I wasn’t thinking about you in that. I’m sorry… but, Ryouma, it’s not that I don’t care about you, I promise. Before I knew it, I started to really fall for you, and that’s part of the reason that I… I lost control just now.”  
   
“You knew?” Ryouma asked in a small voice.  
   
Fuji nodded. “At first, I thought you loved Tezuka, but I realized that day we played each other in the ranking tournament… I should have said something instead of trying to manipulate you.”  
   
“Tezuka asked me how I felt,” Ryouma whispered. “He asked who I was in love with.”  
   
“And what did you say?” Fuji asked, pulling back slightly so that he could see Ryouma’s face. He kindly brushed at the wetness on Ryouma’s cheeks.  
   
“I couldn’t answer—I knew I shouldn’t answer, because I wanted to tell him… that I love you both,” Ryouma whispered. “I didn’t, because I was afraid you would be angry, or that I might tear you both even further apart. I didn’t want to be responsible-”  
   
“So you let things get carried away with Eiji, instead, yes?”  
  
Echizen nodded and looked away. “It was a stupid thing to do. I shouldn’t have gone through with it. I knew we’d both regret it, even though he seemed so sure at the time… I just wanted _someone_  to love me unconditionally. I wanted someone to clearly choose _me_ over someone else.”  
   
Fuji looked away in the opposite direction. “Tezuka did, you know,” he said quietly.  
   
Echizen shook his head. “I don’t think he’s made any such choice… I don’t think he wants to.”  
   
“And if I did, who would you choose?”  
   
The voice startled them both, Fuji glancing sharply, and Echizen whirling to face the captain.  
   
Ignoring Fuji, Tezuka walked straight over to Echizen, put his hands on the boy’s shoulders, and asked again. “Who is it you love so deeply that you can’t move on?”  
   
Hearing the question posed by someone else, Fuji understood at last with a sudden clarity that floored him. He’d been so ridiculously blind.  
   
“Me,” he whispered, wrapping his arms around Echizen’s waist. He stared challengingly into Tezuka’s eyes, waiting vindictively just once more for the flash of hurt and anger before he reached out and dragged the captain closer by the collar. “And you,” he added, kissing Tezuka hard in apology without affording the captain a chance to escape. Between them, Echizen was very still, and Fuji tightened the arm that was still around his waist. Before Tezuka’s shock could wear off, Fuji let him go, peering down at a dark head from which the cap had been knocked off by the sudden sandwiching kiss. “Ne, Echizen?” he breathed, releasing his grip on a rather off-balance Tezuka.  
   
Even as Echizen leaned further into his embrace, the boy very sweetly took Tezuka’s hand, his fingers trembling with nerves. “Hai,” he whispered. The two stared at each other for a long moment, Tezuka’s eyes so soft it was like looking at a different person, and then the captain bent down and kissed Echizen gently on the lips.  
   
“When I think about it,” Fuji murmured, watching them kiss, “I don’t think I want to make a choice, either.”  
   
Honestly, who would choose either of those two if they had the chance of keeping them both? Fuji simply didn’t know why none of them had thought of it earlier. Probably because they were all so busy being jealous…  
   
*  
   
Kikumaru didn’t go straight to Oishi as he had told O’chibi he would. He wanted to, but he didn’t think he deserved to just yet. Instead, he avoided Oishi for the rest of the day and spent some time brooding alone, thinking of all that would never be and all he would have lost if it had. The next day, he allowed himself to be close to Oishi, and even let himself enjoy playing doubles, and by the end of the week, he accepted Oishi’s invitation for a walk in the woods.  
   
“I missed you, Eiji,” Oishi mumbled to him, pulling him close once they were in a secluded spot.  
   
“Nya, Oishi, I’m sorry. I had some things to work out,” Kikumaru replied, resting his cheek against Oishi’s chest.  
   
“And have you worked them out?” Oishi asked.  
   
Kikumaru nodded, blinking back tears. He buried his face in Oishi’s shoulder and cried a muted, “I love you!”  
   
“I love you, too, Eiji,” Oishi whispered. “I’ve wanted to say that all week.”  
   
“I’m really sorry!” Kikumaru sobbed, no longer entertaining any doubt as to whether or not Oishi knew what had happened.  
   
Oishi just held him and said nothing more, as if he’d already forgotten all about what Kikumaru had done, and moved on.  
   
*  
   
Kikumaru and Oishi sat two seats from the back of the bus, cuddled up together as if they didn’t want to let go of each other for a while. Across from them, Kaidoh sat quietly beside Inui who was either scribbling in his notebook or staring vaguely out the window. Behind them, Momoshiro was subtly playing with Kaidoh’s hair beneath the bandanna, and occasionally offering the obligatory jibe to be bantered over.  
   
Their noise, and the various little worlds everyone was off in, was enough to mask the conversation up on the back seat, which had started with:  
   
“Fuji-senpai, don’t quit tennis.”  
   
Fuji’s head whipped about, and he stared at Ryouma in shock, then looked up at Tezuka in a panic. Meanwhile, Tezuka barely glanced at Ryouma before he caught Fuji’s reaction and his eyes narrowed.  
   
“What’s this?” the captain asked.  
   
Staring straight ahead, Ryouma answered, “Fuji-senpai said he was going to quit after high school. He thinks he’s not passionate enough to play as a pro.”  
   
“Is this true?” Tezuka asked directly of Fuji.  
   
Fuji looked away but Ryouma took his hand. Fuji looked back at him, with tears in his eyes.  
   
“You weren’t supposed to tell him,” Fuji whispered.  
   
Ryouma shrugged. “He was going to find out eventually.”  
   
“Fuji…”  
   
Embarrassed, Fuji stared down at his lap. “I guess part of the reason I was so desperately jealous is because I expected to lose you when you join the pro circuit… Since I won’t be there, and Ryouma will… You’ll be on tour together, and together you’ll experience something incredible that I couldn’t even imagine…”  
   
“Fuji-senpai, you will be there, too. I don’t intend to let you quit,” Ryouma argued insolently.  
   
“That’s not your decision to make,” Fuji replied angrily.  
   
Ryouma smirked. “Then I’ll quit, too. I don’t want to go where Fuji-senpai won’t follow.”  
   
“That’s ridiculous-”  
   
Tezuka looked away as if dismissing the conversation. “I won’t enter the circuit without you, either,” he said.  
   
And that was that.  
   
“That’s blackmail, you know. It isn’t fair.”  
   
“It’s fine,” Ryouma replied.  
   
“We’ll make it up to you later,” Tezuka added with a hint of a smirk.  
   
Defeated for now, Fuji donned his usual smile. “You might regret that promise,” he warned a little too cheerfully.  
   
Ryouma snorted. “Hardly!”  
   
*  
   
Plans had been made to go to Kawamura’s upon returning. However, Momo and Kaidoh left within about five minutes, Eiji and Oishi very shortly after that, and then Inui and Kawamura disappeared upstairs. Tezuka, Fuji, and Ryouma never made it there in the first place, and nobody bothered to inquire as to where they might be. The general consensus was that they didn’t want to know.


	15. Epilogue

“Come on, there must have been at least one guy—or was it a girl?”  
   
“You do have many fans, after all.”  
   
“No growing boy can be surrounded by that many adoring fans and not at least go on one date.”  
   
“For once, I agree with Fuji.”  
   
“I can’t believe you’re even asking me this,” Ryouma snapped in exasperation, his glare landing firmly on Tezuka as he couldn’t see Fuji whose arms were wrapped around him. “I was only gone for two years.”  
   
They were sitting on Tezuka’s lounge-room floor watching the semi-finals of Wimbledon. Federer was, of course, leaving his opponent in the dust. He was practically unstoppable with Nadal out due to injury and Ryouma having disappeared from the circuit without a trace. The Australian rookie Hardy had done well, but the pressure of a Grand Slam match against Federer in the early rounds had gotten to him by end of the third set.  
   
“Two years is a long time,” Tezuka replied, his face remarkably bare of expression though there was a tone of challenge in his voice.  
   
“For a growing teenaged boy, it’s a very long time,” Fuji agreed, his voice sparkling with mirth. “At the very least, you must have had a fantasy or two,” he added in a low murmur.  
   
Ryouma blushed. “So what if I did?” he asked.  
   
“Then I want to hear all about them,” Fuji replied in a sultry tone that did nothing to help Ryouma’s blush—or the sudden attentiveness of his anatomy.  
   
As Fuji spoke, he began to lift Ryouma’s shirt, slipping one hand beneath, his fingers grazing softly over smooth skin. Closing his eyes, Ryouma remembered bits and pieces of the many fantasies he’d entertained—almost all of them about Tezuka. Actually, now that he thought about it, there were a few of Fuji, too. How could he not have noticed his own growing feelings for so long?  
   
“Echizen.”  
   
Tezuka’s voice caused a minute shiver to run down Ryouma’s spine, and he lazily opened his eyes to see Tezuka pulling back away from his ear to make eye contact.  
   
“Hai, buchou?” Ryouma breathed as Fuji’s fingertip grazed his nipple.  
   
“Who did you fantasize about?” Tezuka asked quietly, his fingertips just barely brushing Ryouma’s cheek.  
   
“You,” Ryouma breathed honestly, unable to lie to his beloved captain. “And Fuji-senpai,” he added, because that was true, too. “And…”  
   
Tezuka kissed him, then; a slow and shallow but none-the-less intense kiss that made Ryouma forget his senpais’ teasing. It didn’t help that Fuji was subtly causing little thrills of pleasure to run from his now very stiff nipples straight to his crotch.  
   
“Ryouma,” Tezuka whispered against his lips, sounding just a touch breathless, “What kind of fantasies?” he pressed.  
   
Ryouma opened his eyes to see Tezuka’s staring back at him less than an inch away from behind familiar glass panes. Licking his lips and tasting the flavor of Tezuka that he hadn’t wanted to let go, Ryouma took a moment to regain his breath.  
   
“It doesn’t matter,” he answered. “I don’t need fantasies anymore,” he clarified before either of his boyfriends could interject. “I have the real thing,” he added with a smirk.  
   
Just then, all three turned to the TV, their attention caught by the mention of a familiar name amongst the English commentary.  
   
“Samurai Nanjiroh did indeed confirm that his son is attending high school. Apparently, Ryouma has decided to take a break from the pressures of professional tennis to focus on his education.”  
   
“A wise move at his age, wouldn’t you say?”  
   
“Well, that really is debatable, Kenny. He has incredible talent. Frankly, if I had even half of his skill I’d make the best of it now, retire early, and buy myself a house and a dog while sitting back and earning profits from the unbelievable amount of merchandise in my name… How many endorsements has he signed in the past?”  
   
“Nineteen, I believe, Jim.”  
   
Tezuka had a rather bemused expression on his face, and Ryouma could feel the soft shaking of Fuji’s silent laughter. He grumbled and made a lunge for the remote control but Tezuka deftly snatched it beyond his reach.  
   
“Don’t you want to know what they’re saying about you?”  
   
“I don’t care what they’re saying about me!”  
   
“What about what they’re saying about Kevin?” Fuji cut in, hushing them.  
   
“-While it’s true that many of Ryouma’s sponsors have switched over to Kevin, there are also quite a few who are simply waiting patiently for the Japanese prodigy’s return.”  
   
“There have been rumors, though, haven’t there? Do you think Kevin will follow Ryouma’s example?”  
   
“Who knows, Kenny? Young players these days are completely unpredictable—and there, Federer is at match point. I’ll be shocked if he doesn’t take it.”  
   
Ryouma leaned into Fuji’s arms and tilted his head back to look up at his senpai. His most desolate expression earned him a gentle smile and quiet apology, as Fuji made up for his distraction by kissing Ryouma very lightly on the lips, and resuming the wonderful work his fingers had been doing.  
   
Federer took his match point, winning the game, and Tezuka promptly switched off the television.  
   
“Personally, I find it amusing that people are so bored of watching Federer win that the announcers were gossiping over you instead,” Tezuka muttered, stretching out beside Ryouma. He began to lightly trace the inside of Ryouma’s thigh. “Don’t you miss it at all?”  
   
“Not one bit,” Ryouma replied instantly, staring Tezuka dead in the eyes. “There’s enough tennis here to keep me happy, and even if there wasn’t… There’s no Tezuka-buchou or Fuji-senpai on tour—yet.”  
   
Neither he nor Tezuka missed Fuji’s almost imperceptible sigh but both decided not to comment on it just yet. Instead, Tezuka reached out and pulled Ryouma across to straddle him, guiding his little lover down for a kiss and running his fingers over the exposed skin of Ryouma’s back as his shirt rode up.  
   
“What about Eiji?” Fuji asked once Tezuka and Ryouma parted lips, both breathless. The tensai kindly helped to remove Ryouma’s shirt.  
   
“Huh?” Ryouma muttered, not quite making the connection.  
   
“Did you fantasize about him?”  
   
Oh, they were back on that track… Ryouma paused, feeling another wave of guilt at what he’d done to the Golden Pair’s relationship. Everyone could see that though things had healed superficially, Oishi had found it hard to fully trust Eiji again and it had shown in their doubles play.  
   
“Fuji,” Tezuka warned, his eyes not leaving Ryouma.  
   
“…I did,” Ryouma admitted. “What happened with Kikumaru… I wouldn’t do that with just anyone. I liked him.”  
   
“We know. Even so, you were wrong,” Tezuka admonished, even while sliding his hands inside Ryouma’s shorts to gently caress his subtly muscular backside. “But you know that, and Oishi and Kikumaru are stronger for the conflict. Let it go.”  
   
“But-”  
   
“I take responsibility for not guiding you as I should have. I—and Fuji—acted selfishly. Oishi and Kikumaru have put it behind them now, so that’s exactly what the three of us will do. Let it go,” Tezuka told him forcefully.  
   
The urge to argue faded more and more as Tezuka’s eyes softened together with his subtly kneading hands, and Ryouma eventually muttered an agreement, grinding his crotch into Tezuka’s. “You’re right… You should definitely take responsibility.”  
   
*  
   
Fuji watched, almost satisfied to simply observe his two gorgeous boyfriends as they made out like crazy. He couldn’t deny the occasional pang of jealousy; Tezuka certainly never got quite so passionate with him, but then again, Tezuka was never as sweet with Ryouma as he was with Fuji.  
   
No, what was really getting in the way wasn’t jealousy, it was Fuji’s own wavering heart. He knew that both Tezuka and Ryouma expected him to go with them. One year seemed to be the agreement they’d reached. One year of high school, of tournaments, and of normality; one year—and then a lifetime of qualification matches, tours, and battles day in day out.  
   
One year, and then Fuji would have to push them both away and make sure they went where he couldn’t follow. But… one year was a long time.  
   
Pushing his doubts aside, Fuji stripped himself. Tezuka had done the hard work, and now he expected to get his reward, but Fuji had other ideas…  
   
*  
   
Tezuka frowned as he saw Fuji move up behind Ryouma the moment the captain pulled his fingers out of his lover’s endearingly petite, stretched backside. The tensai smiled down at him as he took Ryouma by surprise, sliding almost easily inside the body that had been prepared for Tezuka’s larger member.  
   
It wasn’t that he was petty about whose turn it was or who took whom. He’d have his chance another time if not later, but he was worried about Fuji. It wasn’t like the tensai to be so aggressive rather than passive. It was almost like there was something on his mind that he was trying to extinguish. Tezuka had his suspicions and was going to have to drag the truth out of him—later.  
   
Meanwhile, his boyfriends were both moaning above him. Fuji looked extremely sexy playing the aggressor for once, and Ryouma was wearing the most unbearably adorable expression…  
   
*  
   
Ryouma liked surprises. He loved being taken by Tezuka but Fuji’s sudden change of plans was not in the least unwelcome. One moment, he had been about to shift until he found Tezuka’s length and managed to get it inside him, and the next, Fuji was already there, giving him barely a moment before starting to thrust, rubbing against his sweet spot with every movement at that angle.  
   
He hazily observed his captain below and saw that Tezuka was grudgingly encouraging, and then he let himself go, enjoying every thrust and point of contact between him and Fuji whilst feeling the heat rising from Tezuka’s body. Occasionally, he brushed against Tezuka’s skin, especially as Fuji began to take him faster and harder, losing the controlled rhythm they had begun with. Soon, Ryouma was being ground into Tezuka, his head tucked into the crook between neck and shoulder, his sweaty body sliding against his captain’s.  
   
His erection and Tezuka’s rubbed together, the friction driving him through the roof. He was a sweaty, moaning, uncontrolled mess, and he didn’t regret a moment of it.  
   
He came hard, along with Fuji, who collapsed over his back, and Tezuka followed sympathetically a short while later with Fuji’s hand squeezing between their flush bodies. The three of them lay there, Ryouma panting as quietly gasping breaths beat against his neck from behind. Tezuka’s chest rose and fell beneath him. He wished he could stay that way forever. It was where he belonged.  
   
Fuji moved soon after, though, unable to maintain the unnatural three-man pile for too long. He flopped down right beside Tezuka and Ryouma shifted, snuggling half between, and half on top of them both. He was awfully comfy.  
   
“Ryouma.”  
   
“Mmm?” Ryouma murmured sleepily, unsure which of his lovers had spoken.  
   
“Don’t ever change.”  
   
“Mmm,” he muttered with a smile, cuddling closer to both senpais as he drifted off to sleep. The last thing he heard was Tezuka’s calm voice.  
   
“That applies to you, too, love,” Tezuka’s deep voice spoke. “As long as you feel the need to steal Ryouma from me like that, I know you’ll come around.”  
   
“What on earth are you talking about?”  
   
“You can try and stay behind but it won’t last for long. I know the key to triggering your dormant aggression now and I’m not afraid to use it.”  
   
“Shhhhh. Sleeping.”  
   
“Tezuka-”

“Shhhh.”  
   
“Ryouma-”  
   
“Shhhh.”  
   
“But-”  
   
“Our little prince says hush. No more arguing; not now, or ever. When the time comes, you’ll realize what Ryouma and I already know.”  
   
“Buchou-”  
   
“Shush me and you'll be doing laps.”

“Don't bully my boyfriend.”

“Stop me.”

“Stop trying to provoke me.”

“Make me.”

“Oh my god, would you both stop flirt-fighting and go to sleep already? ...Buchou? You're still hard, aren't you?”

“That giant thing poking you in the hip is just his ego.”

“My ego is bigger than your ego-”

“Shut the hell up! Fuji-senpai, you're not quitting tennis because otherwise I'll never get a moment's rest, so take care of him, will you? I'm going to sleep somewhere else.”

“Don't go.” The mild demand from Tezuka was accompanied by grasping arms that instantly renewed Ryouma's sense of comfort, further amplified by Fuji's calming touch.

“We'll behave, right Tezuka?”

“Shhh. Sleeping.”

*

“Tell me, Jim, have you ever seen a manager so young?”

“Kenny, nobody is judging his age; not with the multi-million dollar deals he's put on the table. Not only is he representing two of the most brilliant young players the game has ever seen, he's also setting them apart from that tidal wave of stars Japan unleashed in the last couple of years. No-one doubts his ability to get the job done; least of all Echizen or Tezuka. Those three are set for life, make no mistake.”


End file.
